It was a bad day at a South Texas bakery, and I don’t mean that they burned your bread.  This is the story:

The owners of a South Texas bakery accused of illegally hiring undocumented immigrants were also housing their employees next to the business, a detail that a federal judge ruled was sufficient to charge the couple with harboring the workers.

U.S. Magistrate Judge Karen L. Betancourt ruled there was probable cause to believe that Leonardo Baez and Nora Alicia Avila-Guel broke the law by ‘harboring aliens’ following testimony that the couple knew they employed workers who couldn’t legally work in the U.S. and sheltered them in an apartment adjacent to their business.

Agents conducted a ‘worksite enforcement action’ at Abby’s Bakery in Los Fresnos and apprehended eight immigrant workers on Feb. 12 following a tip the agency received in December, according to Special Agent Dillon Duke with Homeland Security Investigations, who testified during a preliminary hearing Friday morning.

Six of the immigrants were in the country on temporary visas that do not grant them permission to work in the U.S. It is unclear if they were in the U.S. longer than their visas permitted, but immigration officials have since removed them to Mexico.

The tipster informed the agency that the business owners were harboring and employing immigrants without pay, Duke said. However, when the agents questioned an employee, he said he received $8 per hour.

During the raid of the business — which also includes Dulce’s Cafe — agents also searched an apartment located on the side of the building where several of the employees lived. Duke described the apartment as a rectangular room with six beds along the wall, two bathrooms and no kitchen. The windows were covered with cardboard.

Agents also questioned the couple, who allegedly admitted they knew their employees were not authorized to work in the U.S.

Strong message you say.  Yes, a strong message and it’s about time.

My guess is that there are countless businesses like Abby’s that knowingly hire illegal or undocumented workers. They are hired because they work for less, and require less maintenance, such as trivial things like labor laws and regulations.

So the word is out.  The days of violating the law are over, and it’s time to hire Hispanic Americans who live in the area and could use the money.

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