Roofing owner gets probation for harboring illegal immigrants

A Springfield roofing company owner was sentenced in federal court Tuesday for harboring illegal immigrants.

Hilario Perez-Cereceres received three years of probation after pleading guilty to harboring four illegal immigrants to work at his roofing company, Perez Roofing, according to a news release from Beth Phillips, U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Missouri. Perez-Cereceres also pleaded guilty to housing eight additional Mexican nationals. His company subcontracted with Bolivar-based Taylor Made Roofing.

Taylor Made Roofing owner Russell Taylor pleaded guilty in a separate case to hiring illegal immigrants. He admitted that he hired the illegal workers from August 2006-April 2008 and agreed to forfeit more than $185,000 obtained through the illegal work as well as paying a $36,000 fine - $3,000 for each of the 12 illegal immigrants hired.

Those 12 worked under the supervision of Juan Pacheco-Herrera, a Taylor employee who also pleaded guilty in a third case to harboring illegal immigrants.

The case was investigated by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and the Greene County Sheriff's Department.[[In-content Ad]]