Published November 7, 2007

23 illegal immigrants arrested in O’Hare airport bust
Evening update

F.N. D’Alessio
Associated Press

CHICAGO – Nearly two dozen illegal immigrants were arrested today, accused of using fake security badges to work in critical areas of O’Hare International Airport, including the tarmac, authorities said.

The 23 illegal workers were employed by Ideal Staffing Solutions Inc., whose corporate secretary and office manager also were arrested after an eight-month investigation that involved federal, state and Chicago authorities.

The company contracted work for carriers including United Airlines, KLM and Qantas, said Elissa Brown, a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent.

“The investigation identifies a vulnerability that could compromise national security, while bringing criminal charges against individuals who built an illegal work force into their business practice,” Brown said.

Ideal Staffing officials did not return a telephone message seeking comment left after business hours today by The Associated Press.

Much of the investigation centered on the airport security badges issued by the Department of Aviation, said U.S. Attorney Patrick Fitzgerald. Agents found that 110 of the 134 badges issued to Ideal Staffing workers did not match the individuals who carried them, he said.

The discrepancies were first noted in March by a U.S. Customs and Border Protection inspector, Fitzgerald said.

“If we are to ensure public safety, we must know who has access to the secure areas of airports,” Fitzgerald said. “A fundamental component of airport safety is preventing the use of false identification badges, and punishing those who commit or enable such violations.”

Mary Gurin, 36, of Carpentersville, and Norinye Benitez, 24, of Franklin Park, were each charged with one federal count of harboring illegal immigrants for gain and one federal count of misuse of Social Security numbers. They were scheduled for a preliminary appearance later today in U.S. District Court, Brown said.

Benitez is believed to be an illegal immigrant from Mexico, and Gurin employed her and signed her airport badge application while knowing her illegal status, Brown said.

The workers arrested, 21 from Mexico and two from Guatemala, were being held in the Cook County jail. They face state criminal charges and deportation, Brown said.

Brown, Fitzgerald and other officials declined to answer questions about how workers could use deactivated badges to enter secure areas of the airport, saying that the investigation continued and that not all details could be revealed.

Cook County State’s Attorney Richard Devine said his office has issued more than 100 arrest warrants in the case.

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It can’t happen in Georgia…right? IT ALREADY HAS.

Six illegals nabbed in Atlanta airport’s secure area

2006 Associated Press

ATLANTA Authorities say six illegal aliens hired to do work in the secure area of one of America’s busiest airports are now under arrest.

Investigators say all had security badges giving them access to the tarmac and other normally restricted areas at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport.

In more than three and a-half years, immigration officials say they’ve found close to six-thousand unauthorized airport workers in the U-S.

Here.