K.C’s Frosty Treats Pleads Guilty, Foreign Workers Get Settlement

Story by: Guest Contributor

First posted on 09-17-2007

MANAGER PLEADS GUILTY TO FEDERAL CHARGE

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – John F. Wood, United States Attorney for the Western District of Missouri, announced that a Kansas City, Mo., business has agreed to pay more than $47,555 to six foreign student workers who were recruited in a summer work program. The manager of the company pleaded guilty in federal court today to a federal charge related to his conduct toward those workers.

David L. Carslake, 56, of Kansas City, Mo., pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Dean Whipple this afternoon to obstruction of mail. Carslake is a branch manager of the Kansas City division of Frosty Treats, which hired seasonal summer workers using a work and travel program that recruited international students. In addition to today’s plea agreement with Carslake, Frosty Treats entered into a separate settlement agreement with the government.

Under the terms of the settlement agreement, Frosty Treats agreed to make payments totaling approximately $47,555 to six former foreign student workers who ordinarily would be entitled to restitution. Frosty Treats also agreed to stop operating its recruitment program for foreign students at all of its U.S. locations for the next two years and to receive prior approval from the U.S. Attorney’s Office before resuming the program.

By pleading guilty today, Carslake admitted that certain Russian and Eastern European summer workers employed by Frosty Treats during the summer of 2006 applied for Social Security cards, which they needed in order to apply for work at places other than Frosty Treats. When those Social Security cards were delivered to the Frosty Treats office, Carslake withheld that mail from the employees.

This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Cynthia L. Cordes and Gene Porter. It was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Kansas City, Mo., Police Department.