[ABCNEWS.GO] The owners of 7-Eleven franchises in New York and Virginia created a "modern day plantation system" in which undocumented workers were furnished with stolen identities and forced to work 100 hours a week for a fraction of their wages, according to a federal authorities.
Ten stores in New York and four in Virginia were seized today as part of the federal investigation which found the undocumented workers from Pakistan were given identities stolen from children and the deceased, according to federal prosecutor Loretta E. Lynch.
Farrukh Baig, his wife Bushra, and seven others were charged with fraud, identity theft and concealing illegal immigrants to work in their stores.
Farrukh Baig, his wife Bushra, and seven others were charged with fraud, identity theft and concealing illegal immigrants to work in their stores. Court records say they employed illegal workers since 2000, forced them to work long hours for less pay and required them to live in residences owned and controlled by the store owners.
"The 7-11 franchises seized today will be better known for their big fraud than their Big Gulp," said James Hayes, special agent in charge of the Immigration and Customs Enforcement's office of investigations in New York.
The investigation, which is one of the largest criminal immigrant employment investigations ever by the Department of Justice and the Department of Homeland Security, began when several of the employees tipped off police to the longstanding practice, authorities said.
Federal authorities located at least 18 undocumented workers today and said they could face deportation.
Posted by: Fred ||
06/19/2013 00:00 ||
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#5
"The 7-11 franchises seized today will be better known for their big fraud than their Big Gulp," said James Hayes, special agent in charge of the Immigration and Customs Enforcement's office of investigations in New York.
Can't tell if Mr. Hayes is taking a dig at Mayor Bloomberg or if he really thinks the quote he'll be remembered for is really that funny, lol.
Posted by: BA ||
06/19/2013 7:48 Comments ||
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#6
Wonder what the 7/11 franchise thinks about you slandering the brand because some pakitoon slave drivers operated under your nose for 13 years.
#11
And these guys waded the Rio Grande? No? How did they get in? Waltzed through while the agent was checking a laptop for contraband? Or in a freighter?
[Bangla Daily Star] An elephant trampled a 12-year-old girl to death after dragging her away from her home in a remote region of southeastern Nepal, police said yesterday.
Three members of the girl's family managed to flee when the elephant stormed into their rural home on Monday night but the youngster was unable to escape in time, police officer Pralhad Keshari told AFP.
Keshari said police chased the elephant away following the attack at the home on farmland near Dholbazar, a village on the border with India, 370 kilometres(230 miles) southeast of Kathmandu.
Nepal has seen a growing number of such deadly attacks on humans, with deforestation forcing wildlife to stray into villages as they hunt for food.
A tiger mauled two people to death in central Nepal last month, dragging one of the victims from a hut.
Posted by: Fred ||
06/19/2013 00:00 ||
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[An Nahar] An Egyptian court on Tuesday ended the detention of Hosni Mubarak ...The former President-for-Life of Egypt, dumped by popular demand in early 2011... in one corruption case, judicial sources told Agence La Belle France Presse, but the ousted president will remain in jug on other charges.
The North Cairo misdemeanor court ordered Mubarak's release but said it will continue to investigate accusations that he and his family acquired wealth illegally, the sources said.
Investigators from the Illicit Gains Authority have been questioning Mubarak at the south Cairo prison where he is being held to look into how he acquired several houses and villas around Egypt.
According to sources close to the case, Mubarak insisted that all the property was acquired legitimately.
Last week, Mubarak, his wife and one of their sons Gamal said they would return gifts worth a total of $600,000 to Egypt's former information minister Anas al-Fekki, according to the official MENA news agency.
Posted by: Fred ||
06/19/2013 00:00 ||
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[An Nahar] Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Tuesday claimed victory over anti-government protesters after a heavy crackdown, as police raided homes and tossed in the slammer Maw! They're comin' to get me, Maw! dozens of demonstrators in a bid to stamp out nearly three weeks of unrest.
After a weekend of festivities sparked by the eviction of protesters from Istanbul's Gezi Park, the focal point of the protests, demonstrators have struggled to regroup and police have since fought only sporadic battles with smaller groups of demonstrators across the country.
Overnight, riot police in the capital Ankara briefly fired tear gas and water cannon at protesters who hurled back stones and hid behind makeshift barricades, but there were no other reports of confrontations.
In Istanbul, dozens of demonstrators switched to silent protests, standing still in quiet defiance in the main Taksim Square located next to Gezi Park.
As the protests appeared to lose their intensity, Erdogan said he had overcome the crisis, seen as the biggest challenge yet to his Islamic-rooted government's decade-long rule.
"Our democracy has been tested again and came out victoriously," the premier told members of his ruling Justice and Development party (AKP) to roaring applause.
"The people and the AKP government have foiled the plot... hatched by traitors and their foreign accomplices."
Confident he has weathered the storm, he warned against any resurgence of the protests.
"From now on, there will be no question of showing any tolerance to people or organizations who engage in violent acts."
Posted by: Fred ||
06/19/2013 00:00 ||
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#4
Ronald Reagan quipped that when he read a newspaper, he always started with the sports section so as to read about mankind's successes. He'd then read the front section to learn about mankind's failures.
Posted by: Steve White ||
06/19/2013 12:22 Comments ||
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#5
Who says so? The news media!
It must be a part of their master plan!
Do I need a tinfoil. hat?
Posted by: Bobby ||
06/19/2013 12:23 Comments ||
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#6
Move out here EU6305, you'll end up cursing the weatherman before noon.
As soon as a person realizes it isn't reporting, but entertainment and advertising with the occasional attack story. For instance, I heard nothing about the Kansas Secretary of State having his personal home laid siege. But you know what - kittens, that's what.
#8
That must be a shock to the newspapers and television people. Even the weatherman is suspect. I rely on my dog for the weather. Whenever, there is a bad weather or a thunder storm within 40-50 miles, she heads for under the bed. She is right more often than the weatherman.
Microsoft, Yahoo, Google, Facebook, AOL, Verizon, and Apple might breathe a little easier today. Their denials of working with the NSA's PRISM program to turn over huge quantities of customer data over to the secretive U.S. intelligence agency just got a little bit more credible today thanks to testimony from NSA Director General Keith Alexander.
"The U.S. government does not unilaterally obtain information from the servers of U.S. companies," Alexander said. "Rather, the U.S. companies are compelled to provide these records by U.S. law using methods that are in strict compliance with that law."
Unfortunately, Alexander also referred to the companies as "our industry partners." Other Google, Facecrook, AOL, Verizon, and Apple government partners include the IRS and possibly Homeland Security.
1984 - The Ministry of Truth -- Minitrue, in Newspeak -- was startlingly different from any other object in sight. It was an enormous pyramidal structure of glittering white concrete, soaring up, terrace after terrace, 300 metres into the air. From where Winston stood it was just possible to read, picked out on its white face in elegant lettering, the three slogans of the Party:
#1
"The U.S. government does not unilaterally obtain information from the servers of U.S. companies," Alexander said. "Rather, the U.S. companies are compelled to provide these records by U.S. law using methods that are in strict compliance with that law."
Washington doublespeak. "Time for a friggin beer!"
Apple didn't "come clean": it did nothing wrong, and their statement makes it clear. What they said was that they comply with the law: when they get a request from the government, their lawyers review it. If the request complies with the law then Apple releases the info. But they don't have a front-door gateway for NSA to snoop without authorization.
Apple is simply obeying current law. It can't do anything else.
[Pak Daily Times] The Swiss government has in a letter to the government of Pakistain refused to reopen graft cases against President Asif Ali Ten Percent Zardari ... husband of the late Benazir Bhutto, who has been singularly lacking in curiosity about who done her in ...
The Law Ministry, which received the Swiss government's response to the letter written to it by the government of Pakistain following the apex court's order in the NRO case, opened the sealed envelope on Tuesday. The ministry, in an official statement issued on Wednesday night, said that Pakistain's ambassador to Switzerland ...home of the Helvetians, famous for cheese, watches, yodeling, and William Tell... sent a fax on June 18, 2013 to the Ministry of Law, Justice and Parliamentary Affairs secretary forwarding the letter dated June 13, 2013 along with enclosures received from Nicolas Jeandin of the law firm Fontanetassocies Geneva, conveying decisions of the attorney general of Geneva (with English translation) relating to the SGS/Cotechna money laundering case.
The decision of the attorney general, Geneva, is dated February 4, 2013. After describing the facts relating to the case, it states that the Public Ministry of Geneva has decided not to review the closure order dated August 25, 2008 on the grounds that the statutory limitation period of fifteen years has expired; no new evidence or facts have been revealed; and the Republic of Pakistain procedures constitute an "abuse of power" inasmuch as it is "demanding resumption of the criminal procedure P/11105/1997while maintaining that such resumption could not take place."
Annex attached to the decision states that an appeal could be filed before the Criminal Appeal Court within ten days. According to the Law Ministry's statement, relevant files relating directly to the subject are presently not traceable in the Law and Justice Division, ambassador in Switzerland was requested to send Law Ministry by fax copies of all correspondence available with him.
Posted by: Fred ||
06/19/2013 00:00 ||
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[Pak Daily Times] A leading eye-care hospital said today the cousin marriages and diabetes are two major causes of blindness, which is growing with a fast pace in Pakistain.
The inherited diseases, including blindness, are due to the common practice of blood-related marriages, said Al-Shifa Trust President Lt Gen (r) Hamid Javaid.
Speaking at an awareness session, he said that many families prefer consanguineous marriages despite knowing the negative impact on the generations to come. More awareness needs to be created about the disease and the pitfall of cousin marriage. He said the premarital testing can help reduce the risks associated with the trend. "There are economic, social and cultural factors, including clan solidarity, interpersonal compatibility, preservation of family property, social protection for women, which are supporting marriages within the families," Hamid Javaid informed. He said that the habit of consuming a good quantity of carbohydrate-rich food can cause problems such as blindness. He also said that high amount of glucose resulted in inflammation and harms the retina and the capillaries that supply blood to the eyes.
Posted by: Fred ||
06/19/2013 00:00 ||
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#1
Keep in mind this is one of the last refuges of polio on earth.
#2
Meanwhile, the Orthodox Jewish community has Dor Yeshorim, that checks couples for Tay-Sachs, Niemann-Pick, familial dysautonomia and a number of others common in the Ashkenazi Jewish community. The incidence of Tay-Sachs has been cut by 90% in the last 30 years.
Of course, some groups have a clue. Others do not.
Posted by: Eric Jablow ||
06/19/2013 21:37 Comments ||
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[Pak Daily Times] The Pakistain Tehrik-e-Insaf ...a political party in Pakistan. PTI was founded by former Pakistani cricket captain and philanthropist Imran Khan. The party's slogan is Justice, Humanity and Self Esteem, each of which is open to widely divergent interpretations.... (PTI) led government has presented a welfare oriented budget in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa ... formerly NWFP, still Terrorism Central... with special focus on reforms in education, health and police departments besides ending the VIP culture.
This was the gist of post budget presser jointly addressed on Tuesday by Senior Minister Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Siraj-ul-Haq and Provincial Minister for Information Shaukat Ali Yousafzai.
"Our role model is governance during the tenure of Caliphs and we will try our best to follow them in regard to provision of basic facilities to people and in running the departments," said Siraj-ul-Haq.
He said the budget has been prepared within a very short span of time of five days and main focus was on welfare-oriented schemes, as the government wants to benefit the masses.
He said the chief minister has directed the cabinet that people could feel positive change in governance within a period of at least two months.
Siraj-ul-Haq said the Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa government is trying to end VIP culture and for this purpose the chief minister has decided not to reside in CM house. He said personally he is not using air condition in his office, as ordinary people cannot avail this facility.
The provincial government has decided to cut 50 percent expenditure of the chief minister and governor houses besides imposing ban on lavish treatment of parliamentarians and high-ranking officials.
In the budget with a total outlay of Rs 344 billion, a big chunk of Rs 162 billion is reserved for welfare purposes. While Rs 118 billion will be spent on development schemes of the province. An amount of Rs 63 billion is reserved for meeting administrative expenditure.
Despite limited resources, the government decided to increase salary of government employees by 15 percent along with pension. However now, he continued, the government servants would have to perform well and live up to the expectations of the public.
Similarly, he added, the minimum wage, which was fixed at Rs 7,000 per month, has been increased to Rs 10,000.
The government has declared educational emergency in the province with the objective of improving the education system and improve literacy ratio. The education budget has been increased to Rs 13.83 billion for the coming fiscal year from Rs 12.18 billion in the 2012-13 fiscal.
In response to a question about recovery of arrears under net hydel profit, finance minister said the Jirga system, formed during MMA tenure, would be revived to hold talks with federal government. He expressed the hope that Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif ... served two non-consecutive terms as prime minister, heads the Pakistain Moslem League (Nawaz). Noted for his spectacular corruption, the 1998 Pak nuclear test, border war with India, and for being tossed by General Musharraf... will give due consideration to the arguments of KPK government about payment of net hydel profit arrears.
He said the government would receive Rs 6 billion as net hydel profit and Rs 25 billion as arrears from the same head.
The government also announced giving a further five years exemption on the property tax to the industrial units keeping in view massive scheduled power outages, unrest and decline in industrial production in the province.
About the allocations of development funds to MPAs, Siraj-ul-Haq said funds will be allocated as presently the local bodies do not exist and therefore MPAs have to concentrate on these issues.
When asked about use of discretionary fund by chief minister, Siraj said earlier it was proposed that the CM will not utilise discretionary fund, but it was approved later on since the government needs such funds in case of emergencies.
Posted by: Fred ||
06/19/2013 00:00 ||
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#1
On a broader note, iff Jeb's remark is what GOP-Right + mainstream Americans can expect for 2014 + espec 2016, MIGHT AS WELL SWEAR IN HILLARY NOW AS POTUS, DIS-ESTABLISH THE GOP AS A DE FACTO POLITICAL PARTY, + DECLARE THE USA TO BE A SOCIALIST GOVT-NATION DESPITE ITS CONSTITUTION - NO NEED TO WAIT FOR 2020 OR 2025.
#2
Clearly ignoring the linkage between government subsidies in communities that have a large amount of births (particularly out of wedlock) versus government penalties among communities (particularly in wedlock) that have a decrease in births.
#3
The "Earned Income Tax Credit" enabled welfare payments to be migrated to Form-1040 and the IRS. Can't blame immigrants from taking advantage of a perfectly "legal" IRS mechanism now can we ?
A multi-volume chronology and reference guide set detailing three years of the Mexican Drug War between 2010 and 2012.
Rantburg.com and borderlandbeat.com correspondent and author Chris Covert presents his first non-fiction work detailing
the drug and gang related violence in Mexico.
Chris gives us Mexican press dispatches of drug and gang war violence
over three years, presented in a multi volume set intended to chronicle the death, violence and mayhem which has
dominated Mexico for six years.
Rantburg was assembled from recycled algorithms in the United States of America. No
trees were destroyed in the production of this weblog. We did hurt some, though. Sorry.
[Bangla Daily Star] An elephant trampled a 12-year-old girl to death after dragging her away from her home in a remote region of southeastern Nepal, police said yesterday.
President Asif Ali 
[Pak Daily Times] A leading eye-care hospital said today the cousin marriages and diabetes are two major causes of blindness, which is growing with a fast pace in Pakistain.
Nawaz Sharif
