6 Indicted On Federal Charges for E. WA H2A Fraud and Forced Worker Labor

The six people are facing multiple charges related to illegally obtaining H2A work visas, and using them to abuse and manipulate workers for profit.

 Two Yakima Suspects Illegally Transported Workers

The six defendants are divided into a pair of indictments. The first two, Cesar Jamie Rebolledo Diaz and Socorro Ramos, of Yakima, face a ten-count indictment including forced labor, victim tampering, aggravated ID theft, Mail and Wire Fraud.

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Officials say the couple, who are still being sought, illegally obtained the 103 visas using a fake farm labor company and farm, then arranging to transport the workers from the US Mexican border to Eastern WA, into Benton and Yakima County.  The workers were subjected to numerous dangerous, inhuman and unfair working conditions, including deprivation of water.

  Four Others Use Fake Company to Import Over 500 Temporary Workers

The US Attorney's Office says Francisco Rodriguez Martel, his wife Esmeralda Rodriguez, and Erica Cisneros, all from the TriCities area, and Giovanna Sierra Carrillo, of Yakima used a 'dummy' company known as Harvest Plus  to obtain at least 51 H2A visas. They also oversaw the transport of at least 500 illegal workers into Eastern WA.

From 2022-2024 they claimed to represent six farms from Prescott to Pasco, Goldendale to Sunnyside. They lured workers from Mexico to the US with promises of legitimate work, but after being illegally transported (often without food or water) they were subjected to substandard working conditions and jobs.

According to the US Attorney's Office some of the crimes included:

"...many workers found themselves performing non-approved domestic labor, working overtime without pay, were forced to work under extreme heat conditions without access to clean water, and were exposed to chemical pesticide agents without proper protection. Moreover, some laborers found themselves in overcrowded and unapproved housing with no access to kitchen facilities."

Officials did not say if the four were in custody.  More court appearances are pending in this case.