Above: the Southern District of Florida Courthouse

By the Caribbean Journal staff

A Federal Judge has unsealed an indictment against a Florida woman for her role in bringing 143 people from Haiti to the United States using fraudulently obtained guest worker visas.

According to the indictment, Jetta McPhee, a resident of Tamarac, along with a co-conspirator, Marie Nicole Dorval, secured H-2B guest worker visas for Haitian nationals by making “false representations to the federal government about the availability of construction jobs.”

Dorval previously pleaded guilty to visa fraud conspiracy in connection with her role in the scheme.

McPhee and her co-conspirator allegedly recruited workers in Haiti, promising them employment and benefits, including the possibility of obtaining permanent residency in the United States, and charged the workers fees for the opportunity.

If McPhee is convicted, she could face a maximum of five years in prison and a fine of $250,000 on the conspiracy charge, along with 10 years in prison and a fine of $250,000 on the two visa fraud charges.

This case is being investigated by the Department of Homeland Security, Homeland Security Investigations, and the Department of Labor Office of the Inspector General.  The case is being prosecuted by Trial Attorneys Chiraag Bains and Roy Conn from the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division.