Texas man pleads guilty to extorting foreign farmworkers in Idaho

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A Texas man has pleaded guilty to tax fraud and extortion of foreign farmworkers working in Idaho.

Ernesto Garibay Garza, 62, was a supervisor and foreman of farmworkers at F.D.C., an agricultural services company that operates in Idaho farms, including Glenns Ferry, according to a Monday press release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office.

From March to November, the company employed foreign farmworkers under the H-2A visa program, which allows employers to bring foreign nationals to work temporary agricultural jobs that cannot otherwise be filled. 

Garza supervised the workers and submitted payroll timesheets for H-2A workers between 2005 and 2019. From 2014 to 2019, without the company’s knowledge or approval, he charged the workers a flat fee ranging from $750 to $2,500 to work at the company.  

According to the press release, the agricultural workers paid the fees to Garza each year because they feared they would be fired or not allowed to return to work.

Garza also deposited nearly $500,000 in unreported income into his personal bank accounts from his extortion efforts and a separate scheme to defraud the farm. He did not disclose the additional income on his tax returns for the years 2013 to 2019, which resulted in false tax returns being filed.

Garza is scheduled to be sentenced on July 18, facing a maximum penalty of 20 years in federal prison. 

U.S. Attorney Josh Hurwit said in the press release that he applauded the work of Idaho State Police and the Internal Revenue Service for their investigation.