Jan 16, 2007 10:13 pm US/Mountain
Plea Bargains Set For Suspects In Swift Raid
GREELEY, Colo. (AP) ―
-
-
About 1,000 ICE officials raided Swift & Co. plants in six states.
CBS
Eighteen workers facing identity theft charges after their arrests last month during an immigration raid could reach plea deals with prosecutors, Weld County District Attorney Kenneth Buck said.
"We are in the process now of making offers and discussing those offers with the (suspects)," Buck said Monday. "We will make plea offers in this case based upon what we feel we could have proved at trial."
The plea deals would include a stipulation requiring suspects to be deported and to agree that they will not return to the United States, Buck said.
The suspects face charges of identity theft, forgery or criminal impersonation. They were among 265 people who were arrested Dec. 12 at the Swift & Co. plant in Greeley.
The district attorney's office has filed 30 arrest warrants, but Buck said 12 suspects have not been apprehended.
"My guess is that they are living in this country under yet another name," he said.
The Greeley raid was one of several others that took place the same day at Swift facilities in six states, where a total of 1,282 workers were taken into custody, most on illegal immigration charges.
In an interview with The Associated Press, Attorney General Alberto Gonzales said 148 of those taken into custody face federal identity theft charges after they allegedly used the Social Security numbers and personal information belonging to others. Another 98, including the 18 in Colorado, face state charges.
On Monday, attorneys for the suspects requested an emergency order from U.S. District Court Judge John L. Kane to hold bond hearings for 61 Mayan workers from Guatemala who are being held at a federal facility in El Paso, Texas. They had accused immigration officials of violating a federal court order to hold hearings within 48 hours for the detainees.
"They have virtually no understanding of their rights as persons detained by ICE (Immigration and Customs Enforcement)," said Jim Salvator, part of a union-led team representing the workers.
Last week, Kane ordered the government to hold the bond hearings. He also ordered ICE officials to immediately start compiling a list accounting for all detainees, including those who have been deported.
Kane also denied a motion by government lawyers to dismiss a lawsuit filed by the union representing Swift workers. The United Food and Commercial Workers Union Local 7 alleges the arrests at the Greeley plant violated the workers' constitutional rights to due process.
The union has also filed lawsuits in the other cities where the raids took place. Besides Colorado, the raids took place in Texas, Iowa, Minnesota, Nebraska, and Utah.
(© 2007 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)
Click to enlarge
Stumble It!
Comments