By F. Scott Faulkner
November 21, 2025 – Santa Barbara County, CA
According to the Department of Homeland Security’s Investigation Unit in Santa Maria, what
began as “a promise of steady farm work turned into an extortion scheme fueled by threats,
intimidation and fear.”
Jorge Vasquez, 65,of Fontana, and long-time labor recruiter is accused of
targeting H-2A agricultural workers at Santa Maria’s JJB Farms LLC “and other job sites.”
Vasquez and associates in Mexico allegedly recruited workers into the seasonal visa program,
then demanded “thousands of dollars in unlawful fees siphoned directly from the workers’
wages.”
When workers struggled to keep up, “the pressure escalated.”
Vasquez allegedly warned that falling behind in payments or productivity could lead to being reported to immigration
authorities. He also is reported to have threatened workers’ families to deter them from speaking
to federal inspectors, “serious violations of visa rules and federal peonage laws, which prohibit
forced labor through coercion.”
The investigation culminated on November 13, when agents with Homeland Security
Investigations, carried out a sweeping operation east of Santa Maria.
Authorities arrested three undocumented individuals from Mexico along with Vasquez—who has
a record of convictions for immigration fraud with prison time served–on suspicion of visa and
labor-contract fraud. They each remain in federal custody.
