Excerpt from the Dayton Daily News
A federal judge imposed a more than $500,000 fine Thursday against a Dayton-area staffing company that played a role in Wright State University abusing foreign work visa applications.
Web Yoga Inc. was sentenced to pay a $566,000 fine in U.S. District Court by Judge Thomas Rose. The amount was determined before the sentence by prosecutors and the defense but needed the judges’ approval before becoming official.
The fine is a significant portion of the companies assets and is a fair punishment, defense attorney Jeanne Cors said during the sentencing.
During the hearing, prosecutor Kyle Healy and Cors both said Web Yoga Inc. has been forthcoming with investigators and provided them with information — including complete access to their computer systems.
Rose said while the charges are serious, Web Yoga has been upfront about their dealings with Wright State.
“It’s clear they have expended a substantial amount of effort to correct and prevent something from ever happening again,” Rose said.
Web Yoga’s legal troubles started during the summer of 2010, when an official with Wright State approached Web Yoga and proposed an arrangement whereby the university would source H-1B visa holders from overseas and subcontract them to Web Yoga for placement at client locations around the country, according to the U.S. Department of Justice.
Between 2010 and 2013, WSU entered into sponsored research contracts with Web Yoga. Wright State employed software engineers, obtained H-1B visas for the employees, and paid their respective salary and benefits as employees of the university, according to the DOJ.
