On Feb. 5, agents from the office of Homeland Security and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) raided more than 50 businesses as well as residential houses in parts of Florida including, Orlando, Miami, Fort Lauderdale, Palm beach and Tampa, the majority Bangladeshi establishments.
Eyewitnesses informed the Weekly Thikana by telephone that a team of 20 to 22 officers suddenly encircled a number of stores, cordoning off the adjacent roads and instructing individuals in the stores not to use their cell phones to contact anybody outside. They were then handcuffed and asked to remain silent while the officers examined everything in the store including the cash books, inquired about the stores’ accounts as well as their employees. A total of 12 people, who were discovered to be undocumented, were arrested and taken to detention centers in Miami, Palm Beach and Tampa.
Although the Immigration and Customs Enforcement Authority (ICE) confirmed that there were arrests during the raids, they did not provide details as to their whereabouts of the detainees until February 10. Meanwhile, IRS agents confiscated all paperwork and documents found in the stores and said the store owners would be informed about what they should do within 10 days. Eyewitnesses said that the agents made unbecoming remarks to the business owners during their operation. It was learned that the IRS and Homeland Security Department had obtained a court warrant authorizing the raids. No other incidents have been reported in Florida to date.
Some of the officers who participated in the operation questioned the business owners and managers as to why the payroll for stores that remain open 24 hours was only $500. As well, they inquired about the low income reported on their tax returns when they owned multiple businesses and grilled them about their lavish personal property, such as luxury cars and houses, questioning the source of the money for such purchases. The inconsistency between their declared incomes and their luxurious lifestyles raised a red flag.
One store owner told the Thikana, on the condition of anonymity, that the IRS agents informed him he had underpaid his taxes. In turn, he asked them why the IRS had not issued him a notice to that affect, as is customary. Had he been notified, he stated, he would have submitted an amended tax return. But the officers did not give any answer to his query. When one of the officers pointed to the owner’s expensive car, seemingly to prove the basis of his investigation, the owner admitted to feeling embarrassed. They also informed him that they were aware of his money transfers to Bangladesh. Another source said that the agents collected the accounts for the stores’ suppliers.
In response to the raids, the business owners are contracting immigration attorneys to represent them and to seek the release of those who are now in detention.
This operation has spread a wave a panic and anxiety not only among the communities in Florida, but those in neighboring states, where undocumented employees allegedly were being subjected to harassment by immigration authorities due to clashes among various business owners.
Sources from the Immigration and Customs Enforcement department (ICE), told Thikana last December that more than 300 undocumented immigrants – many from Bangladesh – had been arrested from cities including Miami, Palm Beach , Broward, Orlando and Tampa; all of them were living in the United States in violation of immigration judges’ orders. An ICE spokesperson said the department would continue to arrest undocumented immigrants.
When asked about the incident on Feb. 5, businessman Dinaj Khan said that the immigration raids were not just occurring in Bangladeshi establishments but in other communities as well. And surprisingly, possessing the necessary legal documents is no guarantee of protection. One Ali Sheikh was also arrested on this day despite holding a legal German passport and visa. He had failed to leave the United States following the expiration of his visa. He is expected to be released soon.
As the news of the raids in Florida spread, business owners in the surrounding states have grown anxious. Many have been updating their legal documents such as their employee-payrolls, and removing the papers not relevant to their stores. Certified public accountants and immigration attorneys have been instructing business owners about what must be done, keeping in mind that immigration and IRS officials may raid the stores at any time.
Community leaders in Florida said that the hardworking small business owners had been the unfortunate targets of the IRS because of the recession. In these Bangladeshi communities, the dream of establishing themselves through hard work will quickly turn into a nightmare if federal authorities continue to behave so unkindly.
Meanwhile, according to the available information, 10 percent of the business organizations owned by Bangladeshis have been closed since the beginning of the recession, with the rest struggling relentlessly to survive. While sales have been reduced by more than 50 percent, the cost of running the stores has not, even increasing in many cases. There are an estimated 500 business organizations run by the Bangladeshi owners in Florida, the majority of them gas stations and convenience stores.
