The owner of the upscale Asiana steakhouse in the village of Pewaukee has settled federal charges that he hired illegal immigrants to work at the restaurant and harbored them in a Waukesha residence.
As part of a plea deal, Rong "Ricky" Shi, 33, pleaded guilty to and was convicted of one count of hiring an unauthorized alien, a misdemeanor.
In exchange, four felony counts that Shi knowingly and unlawfully harbored illegal immigrants for financial gain were dismissed.
The plea agreement requires Shi to forfeit to the federal government his financial share of the residence in Waukesha on Melody Lane where the illegal immigrants stayed. The property is listed to Shi and three others and is assessed at $211,400, according to Waukesha County property tax records.
Shi's attorneys, Jonathan C. Smith and Steven R. Kohn, said the amount to be forfeited has not yet been determined.
Shi, a naturalized U.S. citizen from China, is scheduled to be sentenced in federal court in Milwaukee on May 15. The Town of Merton resident faces up to six months in prison and a $5,000 fine.
Had he been convicted of the felonies, he would have faced up to 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine on each count.
Asiana, meanwhile, has agreed to plead guilty to one felony count of harboring an alien for financial gain. Shi, as president of the restaurant corporation, signed the plea deal, court records show.
The restaurant, 1198 George Towne Drive, faces a fine of up to $500,000 and probation of up to five years.
However, the agreement calls for the government and defense attorneys to recommend that the judge impose one year of probation and prohibit the restaurant from hiring illegal immigrants.
Shi was arrested by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents on May 22. The arrest came after U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement took four illegal immigrants from Mexico and China into custody April 28 after executing a search warrant at the residence on Melody Lane in Waukesha.
Residents in the neighborhood had repeatedly complained to authorities about problems at the house.