Both pleaded guilty to hiring 71 men not authorized to work in Canada
In Quebec, two men are set to serve time in prison after admitting to illegally hiring workers to work in the country.
Madani El-Behi and Musavye Adelald pleaded guilty to hiring 71 workers who did not hold work permits in Canada. These workers – hired from September 2021 to July 2022 – were working primarily in the agrifood industry.
The two appeared at the Québec City courthouse on Oct. 13 following an investigation by the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA).
In its press release, CBSA did not detail the names of the workers, from what country or countries they were recruited or where they worked. Nor did CBSA provide further details about El-Behi and Adelald.
One employment agent was also previously sentenced to four weeks in jail after he fraudulently obtained a work permit for a foreigner.
Charges in Quebec case
El-Behi and Adelald were charged following the execution of nine search warrants in various locations: the placement agency belonging to the two individuals, the companies to which the agency provided workers and the vehicle of Musavye Adelald.
There, investigators found “a great deal of incriminating evidence at these locations, including $90,000 in cash, seized as suspected proceeds of crime,” said the CBSA.
“The charges announced today by the Canada Border Services Agency reflect our commitment to maintaining the country’s immigration system,” said Annie Beauséjour, regional director general, Quebec region, CBSA. “We investigate people who illegally hire foreign workers and hold them responsible.”
Both individuals received a 12-month suspended prison sentence each, as well as 120 and 180 hours of community service.
The CBSA investigation began in July 2021. Six of these warrants were executed on July 29, 2022, and the other three were executed on Feb. 15, 2023.
Recently, the federal government introduced legislation to ban the use of replacement workers in federally regulated workplaces during a strike or lockout.
