KNOXVILLE, Tennessee — Federal prosecutors are seeking -- for a second time -- to put off sentencing of a Grainger County slaughterhouse operator who employed illegal immigrants and illegally paid them.
The U.S. Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of Tennessee in Knoxville says in a filing Thursday that the government and defense have identified errors in Brantley's pre-sentence report. The court uses the document to help determine a defendant's sentence.
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"The United States submits these errors, when corrected, will have the effect of reducing the total offense level of the defendant," a motion by the government states.
The pre-sentence report will be amended.
This is the second time authorities have sought to put off Brantley's sentencing. Earlier this year, they secured a delay because he was cooperating with an undisclosed investigation for which he could get credit, records show.
The government is asking for a 30-day delay. Brantley was to be sentenced June 17 by U.S. District Judge Ronnie Greer.
Brantley owns Southeastern Provision in Bean Station.
He signed a plea agreement last summer with federal prosecutors.
Authorities say he employed illegal immigrants for decades, paying them in cash to avoid federal employment taxes.
In April 2018, acting on a tip, federal authorities raided the Brantley plant. They took dozens of illegal workers into custody.
During the raid, which drew national attention, federal agents found at least 104 "unauthorized aliens", according to the government. Brantley knew the status of at least 60 of those workers.
The "net effect" of Brantley's deceit amounted to $1.296 million in unpaid FICA taxes, documents state.
When filing IRS tax forms for the fourth quarter of 2017, Brantley only claimed to have 44 wage-earning employees.
Beginning in 2013, the government alleged, Brantley authorized two managers to start hiring illegal immigrants to work at his plant, documents state.
The U.S. Department of Labor is suing Brantley, seeking back pay and lost overtime for 151 employees at Southeastern Provision.