Eatery reopens after 11 arrests

Casa Fiesta has hired new, legal employees.

STAFF REPORT

YOUNGSTOWN — The Casa Fiesta on East Midlothian Boulevard, raided last week in a roundup of illegal Mexican immigrants, now has a sign inside the restaurant that announces a “reopening special — $1 off every dish.”

Moises Ayala-Garcia, who described himself as a partner in the business, said with the help of an interpreter that the 11 employees taken into custody July 23 have all been replaced. The new employees, he said Wednesday, are all legal, adding he didn’t know the ones arrested were in this country illegally.

Last week, special agents with U. S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) arrested 58 restaurant employees on immigration violations after executing federal search warrants at eight Casa Fiesta restaurants throughout northern Ohio. Casa Fiesta is a chain of Mexican restaurants in Ashland, Fremont, Norwalk, Oberlin, Oregon, Sandusky, Vermillion, and Youngstown. The work-site enforcement operation was the culmination of a more than yearlong investigation by ICE, according to a news release.

Noemi Aguirre, a waitress at the South Side restaurant, said the manager, a cook and waiters were arrested: one woman and 10 men. She said some are still in custody, spread throughout Ohio, and others have returned to Mexico. They had been living near the restaurant, she said, mostly in Boardman.

Aguirre, who has been employed at Casa Fiesta for 11‚Ñ2 years, said the restaurant remained closed until Wednesday. Customers just say they’re glad to see the place open again and haven’t asked questions about what happened, she said.

Aguirre said Santa Rosa de Lima Church in Campbell is helping the families.

“We are responding to a need,” said the Rev. Gerald DeLucia, pastor of Santa Rosa de Lima, whose membership is predominantly Hispanic. “We’re doing what Jesus would want in helping people in need,” he said, noting he respected the legalities involved.

Father DeLucia said he believed seven families with 17 children were affected.

Father DeLucia said Catholic Charities, 44 W. Wood St., is following the proper protocol to offer assistance. Food, clothing and housing are the main concerns. Father DeLucia said the church had collected diapers and infant formula.

Brian R. Corbin, executive director of Catholic Charities, said St. Brendan, St. Patrick, St. Luke and Santa Rosa de Lima churches were collecting monetary donations and material items such as children’s clothing. For more information, call Catholic Charities at (330) 744-8451. Catholic Charities is the administrative arm of the bishop for carrying out the social-concerns activities of the Diocese of Youngstown.

The investigation, meanwhile, continues, Brian M. Moskowitz, special agent in charge of the ICE Office of Investigations in Detroit, said Wednesday. Moskowitz oversees Ohio and Michigan.

He said some of those arrested last week may already have returned to Mexico.

“The thing to stress is that this is a criminal investigation of a company,” Moskowitz said from his Detroit office.

“The purpose of the search was for evidence of hiring and harboring of illegals.”

He said arrangements were made for six children who needed care because their parents were in custody. Three of the children were released to adult family members and the other three were provided care from a local agency, he said.

“We don’t want a child to come home to an empty house,” Moskowitz said.

The individuals arrested, four women and 54 men, are all citizens of Mexico. Three of the women were released on their own recognizance on humanitarian grounds, according to a press release. They are still required to appear before a federal immigration judge who will ultimately determine whether they have a legal right to remain in the United States.

ICE notified local community groups and the Mexico consular office about the operation.

So far in fiscal year 2008 (October 2007 through July 12, 2008), ICE has made 949 criminal arrests in connection with work-site enforcement investigations. Of those, 105 involve owners, managers, supervisors or human resources employees who face charges ranging from harboring to knowingly hiring illegal aliens.

In addition to the criminal arrests, ICE has made more than 3,500 administrative arrests for immigration violations during work-site investigations in that same time frame.

Last year, ICE made more than 4,900 arrests in work-site enforcement cases, including 863 involving criminal violations. In fiscal year 2007, ICE obtained more than $31 million in criminal fines, restitutions and civil judgments as a result of work-site-related enforcement actions.