Police: Illegal Workers Arrested At O'Hare

Illegal Immigrants Accused Of Using Fake Badges To Work In Critical Areas Of Airport

(CBS/AP)  Authorities say 23 illegal immigrants were arrested Wednesday, accused of using fake security badges to work in critical areas of O'Hare International Airport, including the tarmac.

The 23 allegedly illegal workers were employed by Ideal Staffing Solutions Inc., whose corporate secretary and office manager also were arrested after an eight-month investigation that involved federal, state and Chicago authorities.

According to Elissa A. Brown, a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent, Ideal Staffing has been working on a contract basis for airlines including United Airlines, KLM and Qantas.

"The investigation identifies a vulnerability that could compromise national security, while bringing criminal charges against individuals who built an illegal work force into their business practice," said Brown.

Ideal Staffing officials did not return a telephone message left after business hours Wednesday by The Associated Press.

Much of the investigation centered on the airport security badges issued by the Department of Aviation, said U.S. Attorney Patrick J. Fitzgerald. Agents found that 110 of the 134 badges issued to Ideal Staffing workers did not match the individuals who carried them, he said.

The discrepancies were first noted in March by a U.S. Customs and Border Protection inspector, Fitzgerald said.

"If we are to ensure public safety, we must know who has access to the secure areas of airports," Fitzgerald said. "A fundamental component of airport safety is preventing the use of false identification badges, and punishing those who commit or enable such violations."

An investigation by CBS station WBBM-TV found evidence in garbage dumpsters used by airport contractors that badges were missing. The findings revealed how Chicago's Department of Aviation failed to monitor its badge program.

"If these badges are floating all over the place, is the Department of Aviation doing its job?" Chicago's Inspector General David Hoffman told WBBM. "A fair and important question and a question that needs to be answered from the ongoing investigation."

Mary Gurin, 36, of Carpentersville, and Norinye Benitez, 24, of Franklin Park, were each charged with one federal count of harboring illegal immigrants for gain and one federal count of misuse of Social Security numbers. They were scheduled for a preliminary appearance later Wednesday in U.S. District Court, Brown said.

Benitez is believed to be an illegal immigrant from Mexico, and Gurin employed her and signed her airport badge application while knowing her illegal status, Brown said.

The workers arrested, 21 from Mexico and two from Guatemala, were being held in the Cook County jail. They face state criminal charges and deportation, Brown said.

According to affidavits in a complaint against Gurin and Benitez unsealed Wednesday in U.S. District Court, the applications for the 110 bogus badges listed Social Security numbers that either did not exist or belonged to other individuals, some of whom were dead.

One affidavit from a temporary worker who cooperated with authorities said Benitez told him to look through a box containing about 20 airport security badges and to pick one with a picture that resembled his own face.

The affidavits allege that Ideal Staffing told workers they needed to have identification, but that the documents did not have to be legitimate, and also accused the company of supplying some workers with deactivated badges issued in other names.

Brown, Fitzgerald and other officials declined to answer questions about how workers could use deactivated badges to enter secure areas of the airport, saying that the investigation continued and that not all details could be revealed.

Cook County State's Attorney Richard A. Devine said his office has issued more than 100 arrest warrants in the case.

[klingon69]

??? No Comments

[trueprophet]

HOPE FOR AMERICA: PRESIDENT RON PAUL

-- No more meddling in other country''s political affairs
-- No more aggressive military actions overseas
-- No more torture prisons
-- No more pseudo-wars like the "War on Drugs"
-- No more IRS and unconstitutional income taxes
-- No more Federal Reserve (the group of private banks which owns our government)
-- No more U.N. (one world government) participation
-- No more NAFTA, CAFTA, WTO or GATT
-- No more North American Union
-- No more federal gun control laws
-- No more illegal aliens pouring-in over our country''s borders
-- No more illegal aliens allowed to roam freely in our streets
-- No more federal Laws which are not authorized by The Constitution
-- No more federal erosion of State sovereignty
-- No more all-powerful (Orwellian) federal government

They don''t call him "Dr. No" for no reason. The Doctor is in! Join us in this 21st Century political revolution at ronpaul2008.com

"Liberty, when it takes root, is a plant of rapid growth."
- George Washington

"Those who expect to reap the blessing of freedom must...undergo the fatigue of supporting it."
- Thomas Paine

"First they ignore you, then they laugh at you, then they fight you, then you win."
- Mahatma Gandhi

[twylacrat]

Good work, George! You''re certainly making the world a safer place. LOL

[trueprophet]

HOPE FOR AMERICA: PRESIDENT RON PAUL

-- No more meddling in other country''s political affairs
-- No more aggressive military actions overseas
-- No more pseudo-wars like the "War on Drugs"
-- No more IRS and unconstitutional income taxes
-- No more Federal Reserve (the group of private banks which owns our government)
-- No more U.N. (one world government) participation
-- No more NAFTA, CAFTA, WTO or GATT
-- No more North American Union
-- No more federal gun control laws
-- No more illegal aliens pouring-in over our country''s borders
-- No more illegal aliens allowed to roam freely in our streets
-- No more federal Laws which are not authorized by The Constitution
-- No more federal erosion of State sovereignty
-- No more all-powerful federal government

They don''t call him "Dr. No" for no reason. The Doctor is in! Join us in this 21st Century political revolution at ronpaul2008.com

"Liberty, when it takes root, is a plant of rapid growth."
- George Washington

"Those who expect to reap the blessing of freedom must...undergo the fatigue of supporting it."
- Thomas Paine

"First they ignore you, then they laugh at you, then they fight you, then you win."
- Mahatma Gandhi

[trueprophet]

HOPE FOR AMERICA: PRESIDENT RON PAUL

-- No more meddling in other country''s political affairs
-- No more aggressive military actions overseas
-- No more pseudo-wars like the "War on Drugs"
-- No more IRS and unconstitutional income taxes
-- No more Federal Reserve (the group of private banks which owns our government)
-- No more U.N. (one world government) participation
-- No more NAFTA, CAFTA, WTO or GATT
-- No more North American Union
-- No more federal gun control laws
-- No more illegal aliens pouring-in over our country''s borders
-- No more illegal aliens allowed to roam freely in our streets
-- No more federal Laws which are not authorized by The Constitution
-- No more federal erosion of State sovereignty
-- No more all-powerful federal government

They don''t call him "Dr. No" for no reason. The Doctor is in! Join us in this 21st Century political revolution at ronpaul2008.com

"Liberty, when it takes root, is a plant of rapid growth."
- George Washington

"Those who expect to reap the blessing of freedom must...undergo the fatigue of supporting it."
- Thomas Paine

"First they ignore you, then they laugh at you, then they fight you, then you win."
- Mahatma Gandhi

[trueprophet]

HOPE FOR AMERICA: PRESIDENT RON PAUL

-- No more meddling in other country''s political affairs
-- No more aggressive military actions overseas
-- No more pseudo-wars like the "War on Drugs"
-- No more IRS and unconstitutional income taxes
-- No more Federal Reserve (the group of private banks which owns our government)
-- No more U.N. (one world government) participation
-- No more NAFTA, CAFTA, WTO or GATT
-- No more North American Union
-- No more federal gun control laws
-- No more illegal aliens pouring-in over our country''s borders
-- No more illegal aliens allowed to roam freely in our streets
-- No more federal Laws which are not authorized by The Constitution
-- No more federal erosion of State sovereignty
-- No more all-powerful federal government

They don''t call him "Dr. No" for no reason. The Doctor is in! Join us in this 21st Century political revolution at ronpaul2008.com

"Liberty, when it takes root, is a plant of rapid growth."
- George Washington

"Those who expect to reap the blessing of freedom must...undergo the fatigue of supporting it."
- Thomas Paine

"First they ignore you, then they laugh at you, then they fight you, then you win."
- Mahatma Gandhi

[trueprophet]

HOPE FOR AMERICA: PRESIDENT RON PAUL

-- No more meddling in other country''s political affairs
-- No more aggressive military actions overseas
-- No more pseudo-wars like the "War on Drugs"
-- No more IRS and unconstitutional income taxes
-- No more Federal Reserve (the group of private banks which owns our government)
-- No more U.N. (one world government) participation
-- No more NAFTA, CAFTA, WTO or GATT
-- No more North American Union
-- No more federal gun control laws
-- No more illegal aliens pouring-in over our country''s borders
-- No more illegal aliens allowed to roam freely in our streets
-- No more federal Laws which are not authorized by The Constitution
-- No more federal erosion of State sovereignty
-- No more all-powerful federal government

They don''t call him "Dr. No" for no reason. The Doctor is in! Join us in this 21st Century political revolution at ronpaul2008.com

"Liberty, when it takes root, is a plant of rapid growth."
- George Washington

"Those who expect to reap the blessing of freedom must...undergo the fatigue of supporting it."
- Thomas Paine

"First they ignore you, then they laugh at you, then they fight you, then you win."
- Mahatma Gandhi

[klingon69]

???

[rokero69]

?

[radiob-2009]

test

[kansas1946]

Well, just great. Passengers have to give up their toe-nail clippers, have to be subjected to basically being looked at naked, but the guys doing the taking and looking are illegal, with fake badges.
Just makes you feel really save on an airplane.
With 10 to 20 million illegals in the country, I guess they have to work somewhere. Might as well be airport security, huh.

[kansas1946]

Well, just great. Passengers have to give up their toe-nail clippers, have to be subjected to basically being looked at naked, but the guys doing the taking and looking are illegal, with fake badges.
Just makes you feel really save on an airplane.
With 10 to 20 million illegals in the country, I guess they have to work somewhere. Might as well be airport security, huh.

[zootallures2]

And still no terrorist attack. Better stick to government agents to do it.

[rfcnj68]

Great really feel good going through the airport now knowing that they can not even keep track if the workers really are who they say they are. But lets make the general public go through what amounts to almost a strip search just to get in.

Lets here it for more illegal%u2019s in the country, maybe we should just give these folks a hug welcome them to the country and give them welfare like we do the rest who cares that we can hardly take care of our own. Close the boarders now keep the rest of the world out for about 50 years by then I%u2019ll be out of here and you fine folks can continue destroying the country than.

[rfcnj68]

Great really feel good going through the airport now knowing that they can not even keep track if the workers really are who they say they are. But lets make the general public go through what amounts to almost a strip search just to get in.

Lets here it for more illegal%u2019s in the country, maybe we should just give these folks a hug welcome them to the country and give them welfare like we do the rest who cares that we can hardly take care of our own. Close the boarders now keep the rest of the world out for about 50 years by then I%u2019ll be out of here and you fine folks can continue destroying the country than.

[kingreb09]

Please go to amazon.com and type in the search box, "THE GAME BY JERRY WEBBER" and then purchase the book entitled "THE GAME" by Jerry webber. This is a must rea dbook for the entire family and the proceeds will go to help a homeless and will makr foe an excellent Christmas gift. Tell all of your friends to do the same thing as well. And thank you very much.

[kingreb09]

Please go to amazon.com and type in the search box, "THE GAME BY JERRY WEBBER" and then purchase the book entitled "THE GAME" by Jerry webber. This is a must rea dbook for the entire family and the proceeds will go to help a homeless and will makr foe an excellent Christmas gift. Tell all of your friends to do the same thing as well. And thank you very much.

[kingreb09]

Please go to amazon.com and type in the search box, "THE GAME BY JERRY WEBBER" and then purchase the book entitled "THE GAME" by Jerry webber. This is a must rea dbook for the entire family and the proceeds will go to help a homeless and will makr foe an excellent Christmas gift. Tell all of your friends to do the same thing as well. And thank you very much.

[kingreb09]

Please go to amazon.com and type in the search box, "THE GAME BY JERRY WEBBER" and then purchase the book entitled "THE GAME" by Jerry webber. This is a must rea dbook for the entire family and the proceeds will go to help a homeless and will makr foe an excellent Christmas gift. Tell all of your friends to do the same thing as well. And thank you very much.

[kingreb09]

Please go to amazon.com and type in the search box, "THE GAME BY JERRY WEBBER" and then purchase the book entitled "THE GAME" by Jerry webber. This is a must rea dbook for the entire family and the proceeds will go to help a homeless and will makr foe an excellent Christmas gift. Tell all of your friends to do the same thing as well. And thank you very much.