Supermarket Mogul Guilty of Charges
National News
George Torres, a feisty entrepreneur who built a multimillion-dollargrocery store chain by catering to some of Los Angeles' poorestcommunities, was convicted of racketeering, solicitation of murder,bribery and other crimes Monday by a federal court jury.
Torres, who faces potential life imprisonment as a result of theverdict, showed no emotion when it was read. Friends and family,however, burst into tears and embraced one another outside thecourtroom of U.S. District Judge Stephen V. Wilson.
Prosecutors' portrayal of Torres differed starkly from the52-year-old's public persona as a successful businessman andinfluential political donor.
According to prosecutors, Torres hired undocumented workers at hisstores, bribed a Los Angeles city planning commissioner and sought tohave people killed.
A former associate of Torres' testified that he was present when Torressolicited the killing, and another witness admitted driving the carfrom which the shots were fired.
The jury acquitted Torres of arranging the killing of his onetimeconfidant Ignacio "Nacho" Meza, who mysteriously disappeared in 1998after supposedly stealing half a million dollars from Torres. Anotherslaying charge Torres faced was dropped by the judge during the trial.
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Processing Change for Certain Form I-730 Petitions
USCIS changed the processing location for certain Form I-730, Refugee/Asylee Relative Petition, filings. Previously the Service Center Operations Directorate processed these filings. Now, the International Adjudications Support Branch (IASB) in the Refugee, Asylum, and International Operations Directorate will process the petitions filed by individuals who were admitted to the United States as refugees. Petitioners and/or accredited representatives who file refugee-based Form I-730 petitions will receive further instructions when IASB receives their filings. Form I-730 petitions filed by persons granted asylum will not be affected by this change. The mailing instructions for Form I-730 remain the same. Petitioners should continue to follow the Where to File directions on the Form I-730 page. This policy update is consistent with the Department of Labor’s (DOL’s) Standard Occupational Classification system. DOL defines economists as people who conduct research, prepare reports, or formulate plans to address economic problems related to the production and distribution of goods and services or monetary and fiscal policy. Economists may collect and process economic and statistical data using sampling techniques and econometric methods.