November 15, 2007

N. Kentucky contractor, supervisors sentenced for harboring illegal aliens

COVINGTON, Ky. - The owner and six managers of a northern Kentucky contractor were sentenced to federal prison Thursday for conspiring to harbor illegal aliens, following an investigation by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).

Robert Pratt, his son Howard Pratt and his daughter Jacqueline Pratt, all U.S. citizens, were sentenced Nov. 15 in Covington, Ky., by U.S. District Court Judge David L. Bunning. All three pleaded guilty last year to conspiring to harbor illegal aliens for commercial advantage. By pleading guilty they admitted that from May 2001 through May 9, 2006, in Boone County, Ky., they conspired to conceal, harbor, and shield illegal aliens from detection.

"Businesses with questionable hiring practices are on notice that ICE aggressively targets employers who knowingly employ an illegal alien workforce," said Paul Chambers, resident agent in charge of the ICE Office of Investigations in Fort Mitchell, Ky. "We will pursue criminal charges against employers who consistently harbor illegal aliens."

According to court documents, Robert Pratt provided framing services for new home construction in the northern Kentucky using illegal alien laborers in his company, Progressive Builders. He was sentenced to 18 months in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release. Pratt also operated Pratt Quality Construction and HJP Construction through his children, Howard Pratt and Jacqueline Pratt. Howard Pratt was sentenced to 12 months and a day in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release. Jacqueline Pratt was sentenced to three years' probation, which includes monitored home incarceration for the first six months.

The following four illegal aliens who were longtime Pratt crew chiefs were also sentenced Thursday for the same crime: Jose Trejo-Soto, Leopoldo Medina-Mejia, Alfredo Medina-Mejia, and Luciano Salazar. Jose Trejo-Soto was sentenced to 12 months and a day in prison. Leopoldo Medina-Mejia, Alfredo Medina-Mejia, and Luciano Salazar were each sentenced to five months in prison. All four will be turned over to ICE and placed into deportation proceedings after they serve their prison sentences.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Robert K. McBride, Eastern District of Kentucky, prosecuted this case.

-- ICE --

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) was established in March 2003 as the largest investigative arm of the Department of Homeland Security. ICE is comprised of five integrated divisions that form a 21st century law enforcement agency with broad responsibilities for a number of key homeland security priorities.

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