3 Admit Encouraging Illegal Immigration

Three members of a Montebello family have pleaded guilty to federal conspiracy charges of encouraging Mexican nationals to enter the United States illegally so they could work for the family’s restaurant chain.

Rosario Luis Gutierrez, 57, Maria Romo de Luis, 55, and Raul Luis Romo, 26, all pleaded guilty to one count each of inducing illegal immigration, hiring undocumented workers and knowingly accepting fraudulent work documents over the last two years.

Rosario Luis and his wife, Maria, also pleaded guilty to one count of paying a smuggler $800 to bring a former employee over the border to work for their Los Angeles-based Birrieria Chalio restaurant chain in early 1995.

As part of a plea agreement, son Raul also pleaded guilty to a single count of accepting fraudulent work authorization papers last year.

The family operates three Mexican restaurants in Los Angeles, and another in Santa Fe Springs. In all, U.S. Atty. Pamela Johnston said, the family employed more than 20 illegal immigrants in 1995 and 1996.

Sentencing is scheduled for April 14. All three family members face up to five years in prison, a fine of up to $250,000 and three years of supervised release for the conspiracy count.

The same maximum penalty applies for paying a smuggler to bring an illegal immigrant over the border. The penalty for accepting fraudulent work documents could reach 10 years in prison, along with a fine of $250,000 and three years probation.

Johnston, the prosecutor in the case, said the family members admitted that one of the reasons they hired undocumented workers was to increase profits by paying substandard wages.