FEDS: Detroit Couple Used Hundreds of Undocumented Workers on Western New York Jobs; Facing 10 Years in Prison

WESTERN NY – Federal prosecutors say the owners of a Michigan-based plumbing company ran a multi-state labor scheme that relied heavily on undocumented workers, including crews sent to construction sites in Western New York.

According to a criminal complaint unsealed in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of New York, Moises Orduna-Rios, 36, and his wife, Raquel Orduna-Rios, 30, of Wayne County, Michigan, are accused of using their firm, Orduna Plumbing Inc., to employ more than 200 workers who were not authorized to work in the United States, while generating roughly $74 million in revenue over several years.

The case stems from an immigration and financial crime investigation led by U.S. Border Patrol, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), and IRS Criminal Investigation, and includes raids and arrests in Buffalo and Rochester as well as other states.

Federal court filings state that Orduna Plumbing Inc. marketed and performed plumbing and construction work across multiple states, including New York, Michigan, North Carolina and Ohio. Prosecutors say the company relied on a largely undocumented workforce to staff jobs, including commercial projects in Western New York.

From January 2022 through December 2024, investigators say Orduna Plumbing employed around 253 people. Only six of those workers were confirmed to be legally present and authorized to work in the United States, according to the complaint. The remainder are alleged to have been undocumented workers recruited into the company’s crews.

During roughly the same period, Orduna Plumbing is alleged to have generated about $74 million in customer revenue nationwide, a figure federal authorities say was bolstered by the use of unauthorized labor housed in low-cost group accommodations.

Prosecutors allege that the couple went beyond unlawful hiring and took steps to control workers’ movements. According to the criminal complaint, the company collected workers’ passports and stored them, while placing employees in overcrowded houses and hotel rooms near job sites.

In one instance described by the Justice Department, Border Patrol agents executed a search warrant at a residence in Rochester during the summer of 2025 and found nine people living in a small, sparsely furnished home, all of whom were allegedly employed by Orduna Plumbing and in the country without legal status.

The complaint also alleges that workers were moved between cities, including Buffalo and Rochester, and housed in temporary quarters as company projects shifted and enforcement activity intensified.

Court filings indicate that a traffic stop in Rochester late in 2024 played a key role in launching the broader investigation. According to a detailed account in the complaint summarized by local reporting from Detroit media, Border Patrol agents pulled over a van registered to Orduna Plumbing in December 2024 and arrested three occupants who were allegedly in the country illegally. One worker made a phone call before stepping out of the van, later identified in the complaint as a call to company leadership.

Days later, an undercover agent posing as a potential worker met a company representative at a tow yard where the van was being released. The representative allegedly showed the agent about $10,000 in cash and described how the company would provide housing, a vehicle, tools and a small crew for new workers – even after the agent stated he did not have legal status. According to the complaint, the representative said immigration status “was not an issue” and that Moises Orduna-Rios would still hire him.

Agents later obtained a warrant to search a worker’s cellphone and, according to prosecutors, uncovered a long-running pattern of communications about staffing, housing and concerns about law enforcement attention. Investigators say they recovered chat messages between Moises Orduna-Rios and some of the workers that indicate he knew about their lack of legal status. The messages reportedly covered topics such as payroll procedures, the use of company vehicles and credit cards, and how to avoid drawing attention from authorities.

In one group message cited in the complaint, Orduna-Rios allegedly warned workers to keep a low profile amid “controversy,” urging them to drive the speed limit, limit trips to stores and avoid social gatherings like barbeques to reduce the chance of being stopped by law enforcement.

In addition to immigration-related charges, the couple is accused of using multiple bank accounts to pay workers and move company funds in a way that prosecutors say amounts to money laundering.

A financial review of Orduna Plumbing described in the complaint found that the business used several accounts controlled by the Orduna-Rios couple to pay hundreds of workers who agents say were known to be illegally present in the country. Those findings form the basis for the money laundering and money-laundering conspiracy counts in the case.

Western New York raids and broader initiative

The Justice Department says the case is tied to field operations in Western New York and beyond. Over the course of the investigation, Border Patrol and ICE agents arrested 23 workers employed by Orduna Plumbing in Buffalo, Rochester and Charlotte, North Carolina.

The prosecution has been designated part of “Operation Take Back America,” a Justice Department initiative that focuses on illegal immigration and associated criminal activity, including labor exploitation and financial crimes.

Moises and Raquel Orduna-Rios were arrested in Michigan and made an initial appearance in federal court there, where they were released under supervision. They are scheduled to appear in the Western District of New York on December 2, 2025, before a federal magistrate judge in Rochester.

If convicted on the most serious charges, each defendant faces up to 10 years in prison and potential fines of $3,000 for every undocumented worker they are found to have unlawfully employed, in addition to any other penalties the court may impose.

As the Justice Department and multiple news outlets have noted, the criminal complaint represents only the government’s allegations. The Orduna-Rioses remain presumed innocent unless and until prosecutors prove the charges beyond a reasonable doubt in court.

Key Facts & Details