Four more plant employees plead guilty to immigration, ID theft charges

Saul Flores-Roblero, 25, a Mexican citizen, pleaded guilty on Monday, and Belia Aldaba-Chavez, 31, a Guatemalan citizen; Juan Manuel Rivera-Lucio, 35, a Mexican citizen; and Hugo Enrique Ocampo-Ocampo, 27, a Mexican citizen, pleaded guilty on Tuesday to separate indictments returned on June 27, according to a news release from U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Missouri John F. Wood.

Each pleaded guilty to falsely claiming to be a U.S. citizen, aggravated identity theft and misuse of a Social Security number. Aldaba-Chavez, Rivera-Lucio and Ocampo-Ocampo also pleaded guilty to illegally reentering the United States after being deported.

The four are in addition to five former employees who pleaded guilty to similar charges in September.

The nine defendants were among the 136 employees arrested in May at the Butterfield poultry-processing plant for suspicion of illegal immigration. About 100 officers with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, the Social Security Administration Office of Inspector General, U.S. Marshals Service and the Missouri Highway Patrol served warrants at the plant that day.

The investigation from the raid remains active and ongoing, according to the release. No charges have been filed against George’s, which is based in Springdale, Ark.