Charges piled on landlord and son
Ryan Kim
OF THE EXAMINER STAFF
Feb. 02, 2000
©2000 San Francisco Examiner

URL: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/examiner/archive/2000/02/02/NEWS3984.dtl



Multiple indictments in alleged smuggling of Indian immigrants

A federal grand jury dramatically upped the ante on a Berkeley landlord and his son, handing down multiple indictments against the pair for allegedly smuggling immigrants from India into the United States for menial labor and, in the father's case, for sex.

Lakireddy Bali Reddy, 62, who remains free on $10 million bail, was charged Tuesday with eight counts of bringing immigrants into the country illegally. Reddy's son Vijay Kumar Lakireddy, 30, was also named in two of the illegal immigration counts in addition to being indicted on one count of visa fraud, according to the court records.

Reddy's attorney, Ted Cassman, said he wasn't surprised by the grand jury's decisions.

"There's nothing new in the indictments," said Cassman. "We are ready to confront the charges and we are prepared to defeat them."

Lakireddy's attorney, George Cotsirilos, did not return phone calls Tuesday.

The indictments, which were delivered by a federal grand jury in Oakland, significantly ratchet up the case against Reddy and his son. Reddy had faced two counts of illegally importing immigrants while his son faced one count of immigration fraud.

The most serious of the new charges against Reddy include two counts of transportation of a minor in foreign commerce for illegal sexual activity. The two counts carry maximum sentences of 15 years each.

Reddy faces up to 70 years in prison, while Lakireddy faces a maximum of 20 years in prison.

Matt Jacobs, spokesman for the U.S. attorney, said that if the two were convicted, the sentencing could be far less than the maximum.

Hina Shaw, a staff attorney for the Asian Law Caucus, said she was eager to see that justice was served in the case. While the indictments are only allegations at this point, she said the increase in counts was a significant and troubling development.

"The more prosecutors do their investigation, the more troubling it is that this kind of exploitation is going on in our own back yard," said Shaw. "Since the indictments came back on eight counts, it

seems prosecutors are really building a big case against Mr. Reddy."

Alleged visa scam

Reddy, who is staying with a relative in Merced, was arrested Jan. 18 on suspicion of masterminding a smuggling operation to bring workers from India using temporary H1-B visas.

He was charged at the time with one count of importing an immigrant for immoral purposes and one count of encouraging and inducing aliens to reside in the country.

Reddy allegedly sought the work visas on behalf of Active Tech Solutions, a Berkeley software company owned by Lakireddy.

Lakireddy was charged Jan. 24 with one count of immigration fraud. He is out on $500,000 bail.

Court documents allege that while Reddy brought over at least 21 people, perhaps only four were ever employed at Active Tech Solutions. The rest were reportedly pressed into jobs at Reddy's many rental units in Berkeley and at his two restaurants.

Owns 1,000 units

Reddy, who owns more than 1,000 rental units mostly in Berkeley, is worth $60 million, according to prosecutors.

According to court records, Reddy smuggled three teenage girls into the United States for sex. Police began investigating after two of the girls suffered carbon monoxide poisoning in November at one of Reddy's apartments. Sitha Vemireddy, 17, died, while her 15-year-old sister was treated at a hospital and released.

The teenagers were allegedly accompanied into the United States last summer by two adults - a brother and a sister - who posed as the parents of the teens.

Officials from the Immigration and Naturalization Service would not comment Tuesday on the indictments. But spokeswoman Sharon Rummery said the agency was still investigating the matter.

"This won't change our investigation," said Rummery of the indictments. "We continue on."

Reddy and Lakireddy are scheduled to enter a plea Monday before U.S. Magistrate Wayne Brazil. The case will then be turned over to U.S. District Judge Susan

Armstrong. It is unclear when Reddy and his son will appear in Armstrong's courtroom.

Despite the increase in charges, Jacobs said the pair's bail amounts would not be changed.

"Their bail status was already set," said Jacobs. "It shouldn't affect their bail status."

Not to contact witnesses

Both father and son have been admonished by Brazil to remain in the country and to avoid contacting witnesses in the case. Prosecutors argued against bail for Reddy, fearing that he might flee the country or intimidate witnesses. Brazil also froze Reddy's assets to further deter his flight.

Berkeley police spokesman Capt. Bobby Miller was unavailable for comment Tuesday. But Miller said last week that investigators were wrapping up their case against Reddy, which could result in statutory rape charges because of his alleged sexual relationship with the underage teens.

Media outlets in India have also reported that families in India who reportedly gave their children to Reddy have filed complaints with authorities after hearing about the investigation here.

Shaw said she wouldn't be surprised if Reddy were charged with more counts in federal court.


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