Meat processor pays $3.7M penalty for identity theft scheme
Employees used stolen identities to gain employment with Ohio-based Fresh Mark.
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Fresh Mark Inc. has entered into a Non-prosecution Agreement with the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Ohio in connection with its hiring manager’s involvement in an identity theft scheme and subsequent obstruction of justice. The company was founded in 1920 and is a nationwide producer of processed meats under the Sugardale and Superior Brand Meats brands, along with several private labels. Between 2013 and 2018, Homeland Security Investigations agents arrested multiple Fresh Mark employees who used stolen identities to gain employment with the company.
According to court documents, a hiring manager at Fresh Mark’s Salem, Ohio, facility, Yelwin Omar Munoz-Solis, 43, conspired with others to steal identities of US citizens and give them to job applicants at Fresh Mark’s meat processing plants. He then certified I-9 documents, which are used to verify identity and employment eligibility in the United States. Munoz-Solis was charged and subsequently plead guilty to conspiracy to commit aggravated identity theft, aggravated identity theft, and making false statements on immigration forms submitted to HSI.
HSI served search warrants at Fresh Mark’s processing facilities in Salem, Massillon and Canton, Ohio, on June 19, 2018, where investigators detained 146 aliens working at the facility who were in the United States without legal status. Approximately 30 of those individuals were later charged with various immigration violations in federal court.
“Stealing identities to transfer to others not eligible to work is not an acceptable business practice,” said U.S. Attorney Rebecca Lutzko for the Northern District of Ohio. “Employers must ensure that their hiring practices comply with all federal laws, and businesses caught providing false statements to the government will be held to account.”
“This settlement is a testament to HSI’s commitment to the American people and our Ohio communities,” said HSI Detroit Special Agent in Charge Angie M. Salazar. “I’m extremely proud of the agents and prosecutors, who over many years saw this case through until the end. We should remain vigilant and ensure that all companies abide by the law when it comes [to] labor practices.”
Under the terms of the agreement, Fresh Mark paid a $3.71 million penalty and will abide by compliance reporting requirements for a period of two years. Pursuant to the Victims of Crime Act Fix to Sustain the Crime Victims Fund Act of 2021, the money will go to the federal Crime Victims Fund.
This case was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations and prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney David Toepfer.
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