After nation-wide raid
Illegal workers in limbo, higher-ups nabbed



GUILDERLAND — Five of the nine men arrested in last week’s nation-wide raid for illegally hiring immigrants came out of Guilderland’s Northeast Industrial Park. The 14-month investigation by the Department of Homeland Security began in Guilderland after workers at the industrial park were seen ripping up their W-2 tax forms, according to a government affidavit.

IFCO Systems North America, a German-based pallet service company, was raided last Wednesday in sites across the country because the company hired thousands of illegal immigrants, authorities say. While the alleged architects of the scheme have been arrested, many of the workers remain in limbo — unable to find jobs, waiting to see if they will be deported or sent to detention centers.

A score of the illegal immigrants working at the industrial park’s IFCO plant live in two separate houses in Guilderland — on Western Avenue and Route 155.
"We want to get back working, that’s why we’re here," a 23-year-old man from Honduras told The Enterprise, through a translator. "Our families back home depend on our money.
"It’s hard right now because we have to pay for rent and food," he said. "Other people probably don’t want to give us work since this happened."

The man has been living with nine of his co-workers in a two-family Victorian home in Guilderland Center. The ten men living at the house walked to work at the industrial park each day, he said. It is located just behind the house on Route 155.

They earned 30 cents for each wooden pallet they rebuilt, he said.

He also said that he was unsure of who owned the house he was living in, but that IFCO took $50 out of his check each week.
"The company takes money out of our paycheck every week; we don’t know what the total amount for the rent is," he said.
"The more we worked, the more we made"We’ve been working hard, we’re used to that," he said. Continuing, he said that all the men there are waiting for Immigration and Customs Enforcement to tell them what is to happen next.

The raid

The Guilderland workers were among 1,187 illegal IFCO employees at more than 40 IFCO plants throughout 26 different states affected by the raids, according to Secretary of Homeland Security Michael Chertoff. The apprehended immigrants were brought up on administrative immigration charges.
The nine managing IFCO employees arrested are charged with "conspiring to transport, harbor, encourage and induce illegal aliens to reside in the United States for commercial advantage and private financial gain." The charges carry a penalty of up to 10 years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000 for each alien, according to a statement released by the Department of Homeland Security.

At a press conference held in Washington, D.C. last Thursday, Chertoff said IFCO is also accused of systematically manipulating the income-tax records of the immigrants by having them add dependents to tax forms, which allowed IFCO to pay fewer federal withholding taxes. Chertoff also said IFCO is accused of harboring immigrants for illegal advantage and accused of two incidences of committing document fraud.

The five local men arrested for conspiring to harbor illegal immigrants at the IFCO plant in the Guilderland Center industrial park are:

— Robert Belvin, 43, of Clifton Park, the former general manager;

— Scott Dodge, 43, of Amsterdam, a former foreman;

— Dario Salzano, 36, of Amsterdam, the assistant general manager;

— Vincente Araus-Rivera, 44, an employee; and

— Ovidio Umana, 28, an employee.

David Buicko, chief operating officer of the Northeastern Industrial Park, which is owned by the Galesi Group, told The Enterprise this week that the arrests "had nothing to do with us," he said. "It is an issue with one of our tenants."
When asked if this has ever happened before, Buicko said not to his knowledge. He would not comment on IFCO Systems, saying, "We don’t give out personal information on tenants."

Workers speak out

When asked what took place last Wednesday, the 23-year-old worker from Honduras told The Enterprise that federal agents came to his work place and took him and his roommates away. He didn’t see what happened to his bosses, he said.
"We were at work; it was a nation-wide raid; all the factories were raided"They took me to an immigration center. I don’t know the area, so I don’t know where it was," he said. "We were treated well; no one resisted and everyone was treated good"We don’t know how long we have to wait but we have to wait until the factory lets us back."

The men were released by the government, but must remain in contact with Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents.
"If they send me home, they send me home. I’d rather be home than detained," said the 23-year-old Honduras native.
According to a government affidavit filed in the Northern District of New York, the Department of Homeland Security began an investigation in February of 2005. The investigation was prompted, the affidavit says, when Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents received information that IFCO workers in Guilderland were "witnessed ripping up their W-2 tax forms and that an IFCO assistant general manager had explained that these workers were illegal aliens, had fake Social Security cards and did not intend to file tax returns."

When asked if his bosses wanted paperwork proving he was legal, the Honduras man told The Enterprise, "We were asked, but didn’t have them." He added, they were still allowed to work at the IFCO plant.

Salzano’s attorney, Kevin Luibrand, told The Enterprise this week that his client checked everyone’s paperwork and only allowed legal workers into his company.
"[Salzano] knew everyone had to have proper papers in order to work there," said Luibrand. "They had to have proof that they could work"If they didn’t have proof, they weren’t hired."
Luibrand said that the IFCO officers are charged on a complaint, not an indictment, and that Salzano, who is listed as the assistant general manager of the IFCO plant in Guilderland Center, has been placed "on paid leave until this is resolved." There were allegedly four or five illegal immigrants found at Salzano’s workplace, said Luibrand, and the papers they provided were "apparently forgeries."
"I don’t expect the case to go to trial for a substantial period of time," said Luibrand.
In a released statement, IFCO Systems acknowledged that a number of employees were detained last Wednesday. The company pledges to cooperate with the investigation, the release says, stating, "It is our policy to comply with all federal and state employee requirements."

The German-based IFCO Systems North America has a main plant in Houston, Texas, and describes itself as the leading pallet services company in the United States. The company focuses on the recycling of millions of wooden platforms used to stack and move all types of goods. IFCO operates about five dozen facilities around the country and is rapidly expanding, according to the company’s website.
"It’s very simple, because the initiative is very clear. Those who comply with the law in the way they employ others have nothing to worry about. They’re in a perfectly safe place," said Chertoff during Thursday’s press conference. "Those who violate the law are going to feel a tough sanction"We will enforce the law."

Living in America

The group of young men living in the Guilderland Center house stopped their impromptu soccer game in the backyard to talk to The Enterprise.

The men said they came to America from different parts of South America and Central America including Honduras, Mexico, and Nicaragua.
"We crossed through Mexico"I refer to Mexico as ‘the bridge,’ from Latin American to the United States," said the 23-year-old Honduras man. He explained that he took freight trains through Mexico and then walked across the border into Texas. Friends told him about the IFCO job in Guilderland, he said.

All of the men have families back in their native countries, they said, and they all send home money to help support them. The men live normal lives here in America, they said, much like their American counterparts: They go shopping, do laundry, enjoy playing various sports, and visit with friends.
"We would love to have our families come here"It’s very tough to have your wife and kids follow you, though," said the Honduras man. "Yes, we miss home, but we only plan to work for enough time to make some money for our families back home."
Asked if he had tried to become a citizen, the Honduras man said, "It’s very hard to do," and that he did not apply.
When dealing with the language barrier in the United States, the Honduras man, who speaks Spanish, said, "It’s difficult. You just have to learn some key words to get by"People seem to realize that we can’t speak the language"We use sign language or pointing to products to get our message across."

When it comes to American food, the men say it’s an adjustment.
"Our home meals are mostly beans, rice, and eggs. Here we have pizzas and hamburgers. It takes some getting use to"We buy food together, but everyone has their own personal tastes," said the Honduras man. "We don’t go out that often, only on certain occasions. I’ll take the home cooking!"

The men told The Enterprise, that, when it comes to medical attention, preventative measures are their main course of action.
"Thank God no one’s really gotten hurt," said the Honduras native. "If you get a cold or something, it might slow us down at work"We know if we get hurt, we won’t get paid. We try to stay pretty safe when we’re at our jobs."