Philadelphia, Pennsylvania - A U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) case lead to a guilty plea and a $23 million forfeiture agreement Nov. 19 from a Cambodian native involved in immigration and tax fraud.

Kim Meas, 60, was the managing director of LS Services Corporation, an employee leasing company in Philadelphia. He pleaded guilty to conspiring to commit an offense against the United States, transporting illegal aliens, and failure to collect and pay federal income and employment taxes.

As the principal corporate officer at LS, Meas negotiated labor leasing contracts with various companies throughout the greater Delaware Valley that leased temporary undocumented workers from the company. Meas also established about 14 shell companies to create the illusion that the workers that LS leased to other companies were employees of the shell corporations.

Because of the set-up, the shell corporations, and not LS, would be responsible for collecting and paying income taxes for the employees. Meas tried to make it impossible for the Internal Revenue Service to determine the identity of the employer of the illegal aliens as well as the amount of employment and income taxes that the employer of the aliens was required to pay to the federal treasury. LS also transported the aliens, free of charge, to various work locations in company vehicles.

"Criminals who think they can exploit aliens and disregard our laws will continue to be targeted by HSI," said John P. Kelleghan, special agent in charge of Homeland Security Investigations in Philadelphia. "This investigation is a terrific example of how law enforcement works collaboratively to ensure that those who commit these crimes are held accountable."

The companies that leased employees from LS did not withhold federal income taxes on the wages paid to the employees, nor did these companies collect and pay to the IRS employment taxes on the income earned by the workers. Meas had two co-conspirators, Ken Sem and Vivi Fnu, who previously pleaded guilty. 

Meas faces a maximum possible statutory sentence of 30 years in prison, a fine of up to $1.5 million, a $600 special assessment, and three years of supervised release.

Philadelphia HSI worked closely with the IRS Criminal Investigations to flush out this illegal scheme.