Three Baltimore-area restaurant owners have been arrested, “charged by criminal complaint with crimes committed in connection with knowingly employing and harboring illegal aliens of Indonesian nationality in residences and businesses they owned and rented, and money laundering.”[1]
More specifically, the charges involve knowingly employing aliens not authorized to work in the United States, harboring aliens who have entered or remained in the United States illegally, harboring aliens for financial gain, and money laundering “involving the proceeds of unlawful activities in connection with the employment of illegal aliens.”[2]
According to the criminal complaints, the defendants—Tzu Ming Yang, Jui Fan Lee Yang, and Jack Chang—allegedly housed and employed the illegal aliens from January 1997 to February 2006.[3]
The fact that this activity allegedly occurred over 7 years makes it somewhat odd that the individuals were charged on a criminal complaint. According to Rule 3 of the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure, a person can be charged by a criminal complaint, which is “a written statement of the essential facts constituting the offense charged.” It must be made under oath before a magistrate judge, or a suitable judicial officer if one is not available.
Securing a complaint allows an arrest warrant to be issued. Under Rule 4, if the complaint establishes “probable cause to believe that an offense has been committed and that the defendant committed it,” the judge must issue an arrest warrant, which must include the following things:
- the defendant’s name
- a description of the offense charged in the complaint
- a command that the defendant be arrested and brought without unnecessary delay before a magistrate judge, and
- the judge’s signature.
[1] US Attorneys Office, Baltimore Restaurant Operators Arrested Charged with Harboring Illegal Aliens, Mar. 2, 2006.
[2] Id.
[3] Id.
posted by McNabb Associates, P.C. @ 2:01 PM
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