Jury convicts Monett woman for harboring, hiring illegal workers

Jurors on Jan. 15 found Dora Ruiz, 33, guilty of harboring an illegal alien and inducing an illegal alien to enter or reside in the United States, according to a U.S. Attorney’s Office news release. Ruiz formerly worked in the human resources department at George’s Processing Inc. plant in Butterfield, north of Cassville. George’s is based in Springdale, Ark.

On May 22, 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 search warrants at the plant in connection with an investigation into alleged identity fraud and employment of illegal immigrants. Officers arrested 136 people believed to be in the country illegally; 28 were later criminally charged with immigration and identity theft offenses.

Evidence at the trial indicated that Ruiz assisted George’s employees by completing their Employment Eligibility Verification I-9 forms and translating from English to Spanish. Prosecutors said that Ruiz knew many employees were illegal immigrants who used fraudulently obtained Social Security numbers and identity documents in order to get jobs at the plant.

Another former George’s HR employee – 23-year-old Sinthia Valadez-Ramirez – also pleaded guilty Jan. 8 to aiding and abetting others to commit aggravated identity theft, according to the release.

“These convictions mark an important development in our continued commitment to pursuing employers who knowingly hire illegal aliens,” John Wood, U.S. attorney for the Western District of Missouri, said in the release.

Under federal statutes, Ruiz faces a sentence of up to 10 years in federal prison without parole.