ICE arrests South Texas bakery owners accused of hiring undocumented workers

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McALLEN — The owners of a South Texas bakery were arrested and charged with harboring undocumented workers, a relatively rare incidence of federal agents pursuing business owners for allegedly employing undocumented immigrants.

Homeland Security Investigations conducted a "worksite enforcement action" at Abby’s Bakery in Los Fresnos on Feb. 12 and said they arrested eight undocumented workers. The agency said the owners, Leonardo Baez and Nora Alicia Avila-Guel were charged with "bringing in and harboring aliens and aiding and abetting the harboring of aliens."

A criminal complaint filed by a Homeland Security special agent said the owners admitted they knew the employees were undocumented.

Prosecuting businesses that employ undocumented workers is rare. Even during President Donald Trump's first term, Immigration and Customs Enforcement did not often exercise that authority.

In the year between April 2018 and March 2019, ICE filed seven criminal cases against 11 people for employing workers in the country illegally. No companies were charged during that period, according to the Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse, a data-gathering nonprofit at Syracuse University.

The arrests prompted alarm in Los Fresnos, a border town of fewer than 10,000 people in Cameron County.

Los Fresnos Mayor Alejandro Flores called the situation "frustrating" in a statement posted on Facebook.

"As this is an ongoing issue, we are unable to speculate at this time," Flores said. "I do agree that this doesn't look good and since ICE is not putting out any statements, we are left to speculate. My prayers are with Mr. Leonardo Baez and his family during this difficult time."

ICE did not respond to questions regarding the arrests. Baez and Avila-Guel remain in federal custody.

Reporting in the Rio Grande Valley is supported in part by the Methodist Healthcare Ministries of South Texas, Inc.

Disclosure: Facebook has been a financial supporter of The Texas Tribune, a nonprofit, nonpartisan news organization that is funded in part by donations from members, foundations and corporate sponsors. Financial supporters play no role in the Tribune's journalism. Find a complete list of them here.

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