The federal investigation is focused on a network of companies referred to in court filings as E-Z Iron Works Money Laundering Organization that Fuyao allegedly paid $126 million. Fuyao has not been named as a focus of the investigation.
Working at a guard shack at Fuyao through the contracted security company GardaWorld, Tim Davis had a first-hand view of what federal agents allege was a massive human smuggling and money laundering operation.
Credit: Bryant Billing
Credit: Bryant Billing
“I would count about two of the big white … vans the extended cab that held on average 12 to 15 people, and about three of the silver ones every shift, on first and second,” Davis said in an interview with the Dayton Daily News.
These vans were largely full of foreign workers, he said. Often one person would swipe a badge and let a number of other people through the gates — something strictly forbidden for the American workers.
“Usually it was like one person with a badge for like 12 people,” Davis said, noting the workers showed up in the system as working for E-Z Iron Works.
Shortly before the raid, “There was a lot less traffic coming in on South Gate,” Davis said.
This jives with allegations in a related civil case filed by federal attorneys.
“FUYAO records indicate that a significant number of Workers employed through E-Z Iron (money laundering) entities — and who had worked a significant number of hours in the months prior to the execution of the search warrant — failed to report after July 16, 2024,” the filing says. “Of the workers who failed to report after July 16, 2024, law enforcement was unable to identify any who had legal status and/or were authorized to work legally in the United States.”
Davis shared with the Dayton Daily News a group chat among Fuyao security guards the day of the raid. Those records show guards received a message from their supervisor hours after the raid.
“Wanted to let you guys know Andrew ma (sic) called me, he is gonna bring a list of around 50 people to the East gate tonight before he leaves, the people on this list will show up tomorrow morning probably around 8 am up at East gate, have them simply show you their name on the paper if their names is on the paper they can be let in,” the message said.
Then, another message an hour later: “Update, the list is now around 100 people.”
Credit: Bryant Billing
Credit: Bryant Billing
Andrew Ma, the manager of the company’s Moraine plant, did not return a call seeking comment from the Dayton Daily News.
A Fuyao Glass America spokeswoman responded to a list of emailed questions with a statement: “FGA has consistently aimed to comply fully with the law and has been actively cooperating with law enforcement authorities. As the investigation remains ongoing, it would be inappropriate for the Company to make any public comments at this time.”
‘A red flag’
Davis said the 100 or so employees who started the day after the raid likewise showed up in large vans, some appearing to be driven by the same people.
Davis got suspicious when he noticed the names on the list provided by Ma appeared Chinese. He says he made a copy of the list of names and offered it to Homeland Security.
“When I looked at that list I just thought it was odd that, hey how did we get 100 Chinese born people the same day? It takes time to get visas, and it just threw up a red flag,” Davis said.
He looked up their names in Fuyao’s employment system that guards have access to, he said, and they were listed as working for another employment agency he had never heard of and couldn’t find in Google.
“It’s showing that they were in the system for years and their badges were set to expire in January 2025 … every single one of them had the same start and end date, and the end date was preprogrammed in,” he said.
To this day, security guards say while most employees are strictly required to use a badge to access the plant, a large number show up in windowless vans and guards are told to let them through without asking for identification.
Employer responsibility
The Dayton Daily News interviewed local employment professionals about what a company’s responsibility is to make sure workers are legally able to work when dealing with a staffing company.
Tom Maher, who spent more than 40 years in the staffing business locally, said a customer who is being staffed has a shared liability in most cases with a supplier of temporary employees, an employee placement firm, when it comes to the placement of undocumented workers.
“In my experience, we had a few large clients/customers who requested (and were granted) access to our records for compliance auditing purposes,” Maher said. “Our practice was to have our employee grant permission for us to share their I-9 and E-Verify documents. The sharing would not be legal otherwise.”
The I-9 is a U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services employment eligibility verification form.
Companies might be wary of turning to the services of a new or relatively unknown placement firm, Maher said. Or dealing with a firm that is reluctant to share information.
Doug Barry, chief executive of BarryStaff, said staffing companies should be willing to share references and point prospective clients to previous customers.
“It’s really hard to see on the surface where a staffing company would be, I guess you want to call it, cheating the system,” Barry said.
“It’s definitely pertinent to ask for references and actually follow up on them,” he added.
Other questions Barry suggested asking an employee placement firm: Is a staffing company registered with a local chamber of commerce and the Better Business Bureau? Is it a member of a national trade organization?
Barry’s father, Warren, launched BarryStaff, which Doug Barry took over in 1998 at the age of 26. Today, his oldest son, Drew, is involved with the business.
Barry said he is selective about the businesses with whom he works. “If someone doesn’t want to come out to meet in person, they’re generally trying to hide something. You can garner a lot from a face-to-face conversation with someone.”
“There are some bucks that aren’t worth making because it’s your name on the side of the building,” he said.
“We’ve seen them come and go over the years, that’s for sure,” Barry added of employee placement firms.
Investigation spanned years
The federal investigation of staffing practices at Fuyao started years before the 2024 raid, according to federal court filings.
The investigated started around December 2019 – months before E-Z Iron Works partnered with Fuyao – upon learning that multiple Chinese business owners had relocated to southern Ohio and created dozens of entities “that facilitate the harboring, transportation, and employment of illegal aliens at various factories, and have developed a sophisticated Money Laundering Organization,” civil case court records allege.
In the following years, investigators would surveil boarding house-type properties where the government said workers lived, and stop vans driving to and from Fuyao. Court records describe how one group of 11 workers walked from a small Moraine home to the Fuyao plant in time for the start of a morning shift.
Neighbors of these properties had their own concerns. Police responded to some of the properties “owned by the E-Z Iron MLO (Money Laundering Operation) for a variety of reasons, which included a lack of working water, sewage smells, threats against other residents, and the report of an assault.”
The filing describes two traffic stops, in May and July last year.
In the May traffic stop, there were two Guatemalan nationals in the vehicle, according to the filing.
Both workers acknowledged they worked at Fuyao. One individual had a Fuyao contractor orientation card identifying the bearer as working for “E-Z Team” with an issue date of Aug. 26, 2022.
Law enforcement confirmed that these two individuals were not lawfully present in the United States and did not have authorization to work here, the court document states.
Then, on July 15, 2024, law enforcement conducted a traffic stop of a vehicle, finding 12 occupants, including a driver. The occupants indicated they were headed to work at the “glass factory.” Of the 12, ten individuals had pending claims for asylum. Three individuals reported having crossed the United States-Mexico border on foot, according to the filing.
In another traffic stop, on Jan. 19, 2023, law enforcement stopped a Chevrolet Express van after it left Fuyao, court records say.
During the stop, law enforcement allegedly encountered “24 passengers and one driver in the vehicle; these occupants were Chinese, Mexican, and Guatemalan nationals.”
Further traffic stops are described, each time featuring encounters with Fuyao employees or at least workers with Fuyao badges or Fuyao contractor orientation cards.
State oversight
The state of Ohio has not yet taken steps to assess Fuyao’s employment as part of economic development grants.
In the spring of 2023, JobsOhio made available a $5 million development grant for Fuyao, on the condition that the company create 500 new jobs, protect 1,589 existing jobs, invest $300 million in capital expenditures, and create $26 million in new jobs payroll.
JobsOhio has not disbursed any of the funds to Fuyao, a spokesman for JobsOhio said.
“JobsOhio will evaluate the company’s grant compliance when and if a reimbursement request is submitted,” a JobsOhio spokesman, Matt Englehart, said in response to questions about whether the state has tracked Fuyao’s employment.
“All companies we work with that have an active agreement to commit jobs and investment must provide annual reports of their progress until the agreement term ends,” Englehart said. “This means a company must create, and then maintain, its metric commitments through the term of an agreement to receive the full incentive.”
He added: “We do not comment on companies’ ongoing project activity on a case-by-case basis.”
He referred questions about Fuyao’s overall agreements with state government to the Ohio Department of Development. He also said a company’s reports to JobsOhio are not open to public review.
Criminal probe
No criminal charges have been filed against anyone since the raid. Details from the criminal investigation are included in a civil filing seeking forfeiture of property federal prosecutors say was involved in the operation.
That includes a dozen properties in the Dayton area, two properties outside of Ohio, 15 vehicles and bank accounts associated with seven businesses.
Among the objects the government seeks to control: A 50-caliber MH Defense rifle, priced new today at about $5,000, and several luxury wristwatches including a Horloger de la Marine watch allegedly purchased for $138,450.
Among the businesses accused of being associated with the criminal enterprise is One Stop Machinery Solutions Inc. in Miamisburg, which did not respond to messages seeking comment. One Stop’s website lists among its major completed projects helping construct a Fuyao factory and coating warehouse.
The federal civil filing notes Jianguo “Jason” Zheng is statutory agent for One Stop Machinery as well as other businesses they allege are related to the money-laundering organization. This includes Taste of the World, a Chinese restaurant opened on the Fuyao campus with considerable investment from Fuyao’s corporate chairman; and Lienchiang Real Estate LLC, which owns properties in the Dayton area.
“Jianguo Zheng is a member of the E-Z Iron (money laundering organization) and intertwined in its illicit operations and criminal activity,” the federal civil filing says.
One owner of a Dayton business and property implicated in federal court records has filed a response to the federal civil complaint alleging their home and property were not involved in criminal activity.
A spokesman for the Department of Homeland Security also declined to comment.
A spokesperson for the U.S. attorney’s office for the Southern district of Ohio would not comment on the investigation. Asked if there have been any immigration enforcement actions related to either the civil or criminal cases – such as deportation proceedings or visa revocation proceedings – she said there are no public filings.
In an April 14 statement, the U.S. Attorney’s Office alleged that many of the workers were illegally smuggled into the United States, primarily through Mexico, and encouraged to travel to the Dayton area to serve as a workforce at various factories including Fuyao.
“We will continue to investigate allegations of unfair labor practices,” said ICE HSI Detroit acting Special Agent in Charge Jared Murphey. “Collaboration across multiple law enforcement agencies helps to ensure accountability for both employers and the workforce.”
