Tentlogix CEO Faces Criminal Conspiracy Charges

A lawsuit filed in federal court against Tentlogix CEO, Gary Hendry, alleges that he and the company’s president, Dennis Birdsall, knowingly hired undocumented workers and tried to hide this fact from federal investigators. According to the charges Tentlogix had undocumented workers on their company’s payroll. Additionally, both men are accused of making false statements to a federal agency concerning the continued employment of workers that they knew were undocumented and in the country illegally.

The investigation was conducted by Homeland Security and the indictment implicates the men in a scheme to hide and harbor illegal aliens for the purpose of having a commercial advantage over other companies.

A third man stands accused of the same charges. Kent Hughs is accused of setting up KH Services LLC which was incorporated for the sole purpose of hiding and concealing undocumented workers for the purpose of shielding these undocumented aliens from law enforcement.

More Than 30 Undocumented Workers Removed in 2018

In March of 2018, a search warrant was issued for Tentlogix headquarters and 30 undocumented workers were found on the premises and deported. Hendry and Birdsall face a maximum sentence of 15 years while Hughs faces a maximum sentence of 10.

While the first clash between DHS and Tentlogix occurred in 2018, the company has been under DHS scrutiny going as far back as 2016. DHS performed an audit and found 96 undocumented workers employed by the company and warned Tentlogix that it could face criminal penalties if it continued to employ undocumented aliens.

Hughs is accused of having set up KH Services as a laundering front. Instead of having undocumented aliens on the Tentlogix payroll, Tentlogix diverted money from its own coffers to KH Services LLC and then distributed to the undocumented workers.

Birdsall and Hendry are accused of directing their attorney to tell DHS agents that undocumented workers who were working for the company that these aliens were no longer employed with Tentlogix. However, that turned out to be false.

If you’re wondering why Tentlogix went through the trouble of doing all of this, then you’re not alone.

Caught Red Handed

This is a case where you have a defendant who was caught red-handed attempting to not only hire undocumented workers but conceal that fact in numerous ways from the government. Attorneys for the men say that they have cooperated fully with the investigation but investigators are claiming that they knowingly lied and then tried to set up a second company in order payroll the aliens while they were still under investigation.

One would assume that the scheme was designed to cut costs by hiring those who were in the country illegally and had fewer options than your typical American job seeker. Birdsall was paying Hughs who set up KH Services. a specific amount per transfer and for every undocumented immigrant on the payroll. In the process, Tentlogix sent KH Services over $3 million between 2017 and 2018.

Talk to a West Palm Beach White Collar Crime Attorney

If you’ve been charged with a white-collar crime, the West Palm Beach white collar crime attorneys at The Skier Law Firm, P.A. can help defend you from the charges in either state or federal court. Talk to us today for more details.