Feds raid VA construction complex again: MyFoxORLANDO.com

Feds raid VA construction complex again
Find 6 illegal workers living in sub-flooring
Updated: Thursday, 10 Feb 2011, 8:49 AM EST
Published : Wednesday, 09 Feb 2011, 5:26 PM EST

ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. (WOFL FOX 35) - Federal investigators were back at the Orlando Veterans Affairs Medical Center complex late Wednesday night and found six illegal workers hidden under the sub-flooring of the building.

Law enforcement officers used thermal imaging devices to search the site. Agents also used K9's who ultimately located the six men in the "sub-flooring" of the building.

This was the second raid conducted by Federal and state agents at the site in within a 24-hour period. By the lunch hour on Wednesday, hundreds of workers were told to call it a day at the construction site.

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"We didn't see anything," said one worker, Anthony Willis, "just told us to come out of our work areas and have our IDs ready."

Then, law enforcement officers swarmed the area. "All of a sudden cops come around with the four-wheelers," said Shon Trusdale, a steelworker. "Next thing you know, a helicopter is up here and guards at the gates."

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A source involved with the investigation confirmed that they were looking for illegal workers who are using fake Social Security cards. There were few details offered by investigators by mid-afternoon and it was not entirely clear which law enforcement agencies or how many agencies were involved in the raid.

"There is an ongoing investigation into the employment practices of some of the subcontractors who are the site here doing construction," said Major Geoffrey Branch with the Florida Department of Financial Services Division of Insurance Fraud.

The head of the project said that he knew the raid was coming and cooperated with authorities, handing over payroll records and other documents. The VA says it checks a worker's status using Florida's E-verify system.

"The contractors are required to submit Social Security numbers of their employees. It's something our contract requires. That's the primary check that we use," said Bart Bruchok, a senior engineer.

"You've got to have papers just to get on the site," said subcontractor Jake Drost, "OHSA licenses and everything to be able to work on it, so I don't know how someone gets through the cracks like that."

However, other subcontractors have told us that it's not difficult for illegals to buy bogus paperwork and get on the job, something echoed by site workers. "I know of a guy who got deported," said Trusdale. "A week later, he was back with a different name."
We did see an Orange County Corrections van pull out of the construction site, but we do not know how many workers, if any, may have been taken into custody or what would happen next.

Work is expected to resume on Thursday. Almost one thousand people work on the construction site daily and that number is expected to double in the next couple of months. The 1.2 million square foot facility, opening in fall of 2012, will cost $665 million to construct. The medical center will have a large multispecialty outpatient clinic, 134-inpatient beds, 120-community living center beds, a 60-bed domiciliary and administrative and support services.