NO MORE GOOD VIBRATIONS EMBASSY ZAGREB AFU

UNCLAS ZAGREB 000105 SIPDIS DEPARTMENT FOR CA/FPP J. JONES AND J. CARSON POSTS FOR FRAUD PREVENTION MANAGER E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: CVIS KFRD HR SUBJECT: NO MORE GOOD VIBRATIONS EMBASSY ZAGREB AFU UNCOVERS VIBROFLOORS L-VISA FRAUD RING ¶1. SUMMARY. American Embassy Zagreb's consular Anti-Fraud Unit has discovered that a U.S. company, Vibrofloors World Group LLC of Fayetteville, GA, has facilitated fraudulent L-1 and B-1 visa issuances for a large number of tile layers and floor installers from Croatia and a smaller number from Poland. The alleged sister company in Croatia, Vibrofloors Croatia, exists of little more than a doorbell in a south Zagreb apartment building. Once in the United States, workers are paid cash for physical labor, laying floors in and around Atlanta, GA. The company's president, , a Croatian national, has been found ineligible for visa issuance as an alien smuggler. END SUMMARY. ¶2. A U.S. company, Vibrofloors World Group LLC, from 2000 to 2005 recruited approximately 37 individuals from Croatia and Poland to enter the United States on L-1 and B-1 visas to install floors and floor tiling in and around Atlanta, GA. The company's president, Mario Cvitkovic, established a shell company, Vibrofloors Croatia, and coached workers to claim they were traveling to train U.S. workers on a laser-guided floor installation procedure to facilitate L-1 and B-1 visa issuance. Numerous current and former employees have told post's consular Anti-Fraud Unit that they worked exclusively in the United States and that they performed only physical labor floor tile installation. ¶3. The fraud ring began in the mid-1990s with an apparently legitimate Germany company, ACSS Vibrofloors GmbH, which patented a procedure for installing floor surfaces that would withstand heavy vibrations common in industrial processes. A German national, Markus Steinbrecher (02-DEC-1967 GER),and a Croatian national, Mario Cvitkovic (26-MAR-1960 HRV),established a U.S.-based derivative, Vibrofloors World Group LLC, in 2000. Cvitkovic took out a Croatian newspaper ad in 2000 seeking Croatian men interested in work in the United States. Between 2000 and 2005, he brought approximately 37 workers and their families to the United States on L-1 and B-1 visas. A former employee describes Cvitkovic as a "good guy who helps Croatians work in the United States." ¶4. Four egregiously unqualified beneficiaries associated with Vibrofloors World Group LLC applied for L-1 visas in Zagreb in January 2006. Each admitted that he had previously entered the U.S. on a B-1 visa to accept employment from Cvitkovic as a floor installer. Each admitted he was only a physical laborer. Three spoke no English and two acknowledged they had never worked for Vibrofloors World Group outside of the United States. Post opened a fraud investigation on Vibrofloors' activities in Croatia. ¶5. Vibrofloors Croatia does not provide goods or services or engage in commerce of any kind. No current or former employee could name a project or contract on which Vibrofloors Croatia had worked. Most employees admitted in interviews that Vibrofloors does not operate in Croatia but only in the United States. According to commercial court records, Vibrofloors Croatia was set up in 2000; however, when post's Anti-Fraud Uunit visited Vibrofloors Croatia's headquarters, it found only a private apartment in south Zagreb. ¶6. Current and former employees of Vibrofloors World Group paint a clear picture of the company's activities in the United States. Approximately 20-25 current workers are divided into installation teams of 5-7 workers who install floors and floor tiles in Georgia, mostly for car manufactures including BMW and Lexis. Most have no specialized training and have no knowledge of the company's organization. Cvitkovic personally pays workers between $3,000 and $5,000 a month in cash, though several employees have told us Cvitkovic stopped paying salaries in mid-2005. Workers are lodged in various hotels, frequently moving among Super 8 and Red Roof Inn motels. No employee could correctly state his U.S. address. Company documents list two addresses: 135 Walter Way; Fayetteville, GA 30214 and 1415 Highway 85 North; Fayetteville, GA 30214. ¶7. Post found Mario Cvitkovic (AKA Zeljko Cvitkovic, 26- MAR-1960 HRV/ASTL) ineligible for L-1 visa issuance under 212(a)6(E) for offering aliens employment where they would not enter the United States legally to accept the employment,. Four pending L-1 applications have been forwarded to DHS with recommendations for petition revocation. Post's Anti-Fraud Unit is reviewing all cases of applicants previously issued L or B visas and believed to be already in the United States and will cable recommendations for visa revocation septel.