Posted on 03/11/2018 8:40:00 PM PDT by Kaslin
This story is a little over a week and half old, but it remains topical. A Florida man avoided paying millions in social security, federal, income and Medicare taxes by failing to report a number of illegal aliens working on his payroll. However, his story also shows the potentially dangerous work environment that exists for illegal aliens when immigration laws are neglected.
Mac Johnson owns several roofing, tree services, and dumpster businesses. According to WCJB ABC 20 News, he "devised a scheme to conceal the amount of wages earned by his undocumented alien employees to avoid paying more than $1.7 million in federal income, Medicare, and social security taxes, as well as more than $1 million in Florida worker’s compensation premiums.”
“Johnson concealed the wages from the State of Florida by inaccurately and incompletely identifying all employees, representing that lower wages were paid than the true amounts, and paying by cash or a non-payroll check in amounts of less than $10,000 to avoid reporting requirements,” the local media added.
According to the United States Justice Department, Johnson pled guilty on Tuesday February 27th to "tax fraud, wire fraud, structuring financial transactions to evade reporting requirements, and harboring undocumented aliens.” Johnson also rented several properties to the illegal aliens working for him and deducted money from their paycheck to supplement rent.
The DOJ’s news release also states that “investigators discovered that undocumented alien employees on work sites did not speak English or have any personal identification. Their names did not match the names on the insurance policy, and their files contained employment eligibility verification forms that did not match their handwriting.” He was also arranging rides to and from work for his illegal alien employees.
Johnson will be sentenced on May 29th. Penalties include:
This case presents several often overlooked problems with illegal immigration. In the Democrats’ effort to shelter illegal aliens, they have created a blackmarket that opens the possibility of rampant abuse and violation of human rights. There is no evidence so far that Johnson abused any of these illegal aliens, but this case certainly highlights how such abuses could occur. Johnson was providing shelter, transportation, and payment to these individuals hidden from the government. It is unclear if he was paying less than the required wage.
As evidenced by the Federation for Immigration Reform, illegal alien abuse does occur when America's laws are not properly enforced. Take for instance the story of Aroldo Castillo-Serrano. According to FAIR in 2016, he "was sentenced to more than 15 years in prison for his part in smuggling Guatemalan workers, including minors, and making them work 12 hour days. They were forced to live in cramped conditions and were made to pay off a significant debt incurred by Castillo-Serrano. Ana Angelica Pedro Juan was also sentenced to 10 years in prison for her part in the operation."
FAIR estimates that "that 17,000 to 19,000 foreign nationals are trafficked into the United States each year. Trafficking is the recruitment and possible transport of persons within or across boundaries by force, fraud, or deception for the purpose of exploiting them economically." Again, there is no sign such abuse occurred in Johnson's case, but he certainly operated in the type of environment where such abuse is possible.
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This is the way popcorn pops. The heat gets turned up and soon a kernel pops. Then another. Then a couple more. Before you know it there is so much popping one can barely discern the individual pops.
This is how our war against harboring illegals will be won. First one pop. Then several. Then perhaps, to use a word that would make progressives cringe, a sort of “amnesty”; not for the illegals but for employers who wish to avoid prison.
We’re all going to need some popcorn to pop.
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Sorry, but WTH? The only thing I see is the semi-crackdown on illegals (hundred head here, another 50 there) and reports such as this. Sessions gave CA a stern tongue-bath; nothing for the other 5 Sanct. States, or numerous counties.
I have yet to see/hear/read of *ANY* govt employee put through the ringer, let alone hauled off in handcuffs; the list of violations for ‘helping’ illegals being a mile-long.
There’s no ‘link’ between the biz owner and govt employees. There’s not *ONE* way to ‘use the minnow vs. *big* fish’ in this scenario.
Instead of plugging the LEAKS (aka the [illegal] govt carrot(s)], here we have a finger in the crumbling dam, yet again.
“In my part of NJ (with plenty of illegal aliens), plenty of employers want to pay AMERICANS off the books as well.”
Don’t blame them.
And hey, It’s Jersey, so:
“It ain’t illegal unless you get caught.”
That is an awesome web-site.
People in every state do stupid, bizarre and/or crazy things, but “Florida man...” seems to operate at a much higher (or would that be lower?) level than any of the other 49 “men”..
I think almost EVERY company in Miami is engaged in this type of activity.
One down, tens of thousands to go.
Why should WE help a country that invades our territory, then demands that we give them everything from housing to food stamps? Then they complain that we don't speak THEIR language!
I'd rather they just say Thank You, and GTFO of MY country!
Go to any meat packing floor.
Hormel shipped entire villages over. Excel the same.
Unfortunately, you're probably right. I'm all in favor of fining (and for repeat offenders imprisoning) employers who knowingly hire illegals. However, in the long run that won't accomplish much unless we also deport the illegals themselves.
In September 2017, Asplundh Tree Service got bent with a $95,000,000 fine for hiring illegals.
That’s pretty serious stuff, and in my opinion long overdue with that company. Schadenfreude does not quite fulfill the feeling I had when I read that headline some months ago.
I have had at least three dealings with Asplundh back in Ohio on my property. They had a contract with AEP keeping ROWs cleared...one of those being an 800’ ROW on my place.
The last event...well, quite the language barrier going on with the four crew when I busted them the first morning for not doing what I had agreed to with the area supervisor. I got the confusion cleared up after the one “lead guy” understood me enough to hand a card with the supervisor’s phone number.
They then proceeded in the course of the next day to drop two trees on a couple of young-ish sugar maples I had rescued from the briars and grape vines many years ago which by then had turned into some very handsome contributors to the landscape.
When I saw that happen I went running and screaming at them. I told them I was calling the supervisor to get them run off. The lead hombre understood just enough that he was willing to barter some work if I did not call.
I pointed to a real big “leaner” of a ash tree that was going to be real byotch to handle myself. I got through to them enough to make it clear if they would drop that ash, I would not call.
What did those most colorful Kentucky ironworkers I used to work around call incompetents like that? Oh yeah...SHEEPKILLERS.
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In September 2017, Asplundh Tree Service got bent with a $95,000,000 fine for hiring illegals.
That’s pretty serious stuff, and in my opinion long overdue with that company. Schadenfreude does not quite fulfill the feeling I had when I read that headline some months ago.
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Great. *Maybe* they learned their lesson, maybe not. I didn’t find where the fine was PIF...Didn’t note, either, where they lost the municipal contracts a/o prohibited from bidding. All too often, we’ve seen these types of ‘fines’ on a biz....that easily absorbs the costs w/o detriment.
Yet, my point still stands: Not *ONE* govt employee/officer/agent/etc. even FIRED. Illegals remain 1) our Rights are violated via govt (aka ‘welfare’) 2) Govt ITSELF violates its own laws/endeavors (IRS [illegally] allows TIN for EITC, small border/ICE force, ‘catch-n-release’ vs. high flight-risk, in-state costs for illegals, etc....)
Dry up the pipeline by jailing those in GOVT. Biz can’t keep the flood-gates open like govt.
The first thing I thought when seeing this: Duh!
Why else would Chamber-of-Commerce RINOs favor this? Other than avoiding minimum wage.
What? This was a unique case? Run of the mill.
As long as there is greed and the willingness to ignore the laws, there will be creeps like this to take advantage of those without the ability to protect themselves.
Some one should take the constitution and show him the 13th amendment.
Even if none of these existed, there still would be a demand for illegals, simply because Americans aren't willing to work for pennies or live in the squalid conditions (family of 10 in a clapboard shack and a tin roof) in which many Mexicans and other Third World people are quite happy.
that’s usually the argument for amnesty; people living in fear, shadows, fringes of society, &etc, &etc.
Has to be the same with many border states as well. Needs to be shut down hard.
How is a young person supposed to take the risks that come with under the table? No unemployment insurance, no protection if you’re hurt on the job, no documented work history, the risk of being caught by the IRS...they certainly won’t be raising a family or buying a home.
Democrats never get far from their roots.
They think illegal aliens are better than slaves because they count 1/1 towards representation in Congress and the electoral college, unlike slaves which only counted 3/5ths.
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