Queens Woman Ordered to Pay $3M in Immigration Scam

[Jeanfromfillmore]

Queens Woman Ordered to Pay $3M in Immigration Scam


NEW YORK (AP/1010 WINS) -- New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo says a Queens businesswoman has been ordered to pay more than $3 million for defrauding dozens of illegal immigrants.

Cuomo said Monday that Miriam Mercedes Hernandez was ordered in Manhattan State Supreme Court to pay full restitution to 37 Latino immigrants and $2.8 million in penalties.

Cuomo had accused the Jackson Heights woman of defrauding the immigrants out of hundreds of thousands of dollars.

In a lawsuit filed in May 2009, Cuomo said Hernandez falsely told her victims she could get them legal U.S. residency, including social security cards and passports. She demanded $15,000 for the documents.

Her attorney didn't immediately return a phone call or respond to an e-mail.
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