O'Hare workers accused of fake badges

CHICAGO, Nov. 8 (UPI) -- U.S. and local law enforcement agents arrested 24 workers at Chicago's O'Hare International Airport who allegedly used fake security badges.

The workers, who are also alleged to be in the country illegally, are accused of using counterfeit badges to work on the tarmac, in cargo areas and other high-security areas, the Chicago Tribune reported Thursday.

Two company managers at Ideal Staffing Solutions Inc., a Bensenville, Ill., temporary employment agency, were also arrested and accused of hiring the workers and providing them with deactivated security badges to allow them to work in restricted zones. Immigration officials said the company deliberately allowed the workers to lie about their identities on airport security applications.

"We can have no tolerance for people who set up businesses for people with fake identities to have access to secure areas of the airport," U.S. Attorney Patrick Fitzgerald said at a news conference.

Mary Gurin and Norinye Benitez,managers at Ideal Staffing, each face one count of harboring illegal aliens for financial gain and one count of misusing Social Security numbers.