Alien Smuggling Circulating Around School Districts

KFox ^ | October 22, 2004 | Janice Carpio

[FITZ]

It's a case involving Conspiracy and Fraud within the Socorro Independent School District. 273 Philipino teachers promised a brighter future instead many left without jobs and no money. But what some say is even more troubling is who's allegedly part of this smuggling ring. The former Interim Superintendent of Socorro Schools, Mario Aguilar, and his wife Magdalena Aguilar, Principal of Vista Del Sol Elementary. "It's shocking because we need to trust these people." "I volunteer a lot at school and it is shocking, it's probably going to shake up a lot of things, bring out other stuff that we're not aware of." Parents reacted to the news in shock. Not only because of the leaders involved but the fact that Soccorro isn't the only district under investigation. "There were 273 teachers petitioned for by the school district here in El Paso and in South San Antonio, specifically the Canutillo Independent School District, El Paso Independent School District, Ysleta, Socorro and Tornillo, 159 didn't have jobs," says Brandy Gaudes, Asst. U.S. Attorney.

Using a business front called Omni Consortium the Aguilars along with 5 others, allegedly offered expense paid trips to the Phillipines to school administrators willing to petition for at least 10 Phillipino teachers. According to prosecutors, those teachers, desperate to come to the U.S., paid $1200 to $1500 a month to Omni Consortium and were told that money would help secure them jobs in the U.S. That amount was more than one half of their yearly teacher salary in the Phillipines, "we were told that they were taking out loans from the defendants in the amount of 10,000 dollars to be repayed at 60% per annum in short a 10,000 dollar loan turned into 30,000 dollars within 18 months."

In a statement released today by the Socorro ISD, 12 teachers were hired from the Phillipines through Omni Consortium. Nine of those teachers are still employed in the district. Those teachers jobs will not be affected. YISD Officials Stated: "The district will continue to support efforts to gain the proper work status of these teachers." All the assets of the several companies involved and the assets of those under investigation have been seized.

Now according to SISD administrators, Principal Magdalena Aguilar has been suspended with pay and an Interim Principal will take her place immediately. Irene Lokey, former Associate Superintendent of Human Resources with YISD has been named in the indictment but has not worked for the district since June 2004. Court documents show Florita, Noel, and Angelica Tolentino operated Omni Consortium, they were big players in this scheme, and were arrested today in Houston and may be extradited back to El Paso.

[jocon307]

This is what the Fed'l Gov't's flagrant failure to enforce immigration law has wrought.