<p>Eighteen people have been indicted on federal charges stemming from a ring that used illegal immigrants as employees in metro Atlanta gas stations and convenience stores, the U.S. Attorney's office said Tuesday.</p><p>The 18 have been charged with conspiracy and inducing and encouraging undocumented aliens to live in the United States, according to a statement from the U.S. Attorney's office. Millions of dollars also are sought in the indictment. Initial court appearances on the charges began Tuesday.</p><p>Those indicted include: Malik Karimi, 42; Mansoor Karimi, 75; and Arif Merchant, 38; all of Duluth; Ramzan Karimi, 49; Lony Ahsan, 42; Nazmul Ahsan, 36; Rozina Jivan, 27; and Ritu Rao, 47; all of Atlanta, and Allauddin Karimi, 59, of Norcross.</p><p>Also indicted were Amanullah Devji, 31; Rafiq Devji, 37; Ameen Hakani, 38; Abdul Hamid, 57; Syed Hossain, 48; Samad Shaikh, 45; and Nawz Sharif, 42; all of Lilburn, Habibullah Hemani, 54, of Snellville and Shezad Ismail, 25, of Lawrenceville.</p><p>According to the U.S. Attorney's Office, Mansoor Karimi and his two sons, Malik and Ramzan Karimi owned a business called Sugar Bear Inc. They also owned and operated gas stations in the metro area.</p><p>The three created business agreements with the other defendants, leasing the gas station sites and employing illegal aliens at those sites, the statement said.</p><p>"The defendants used undocumented aliens as a means of attaining higher profits through non-payment of overtime compensation, non-payment of employer-share taxes and non-payment of emandatory employee benefits," the statement said.</p><p>The illegal aliens were paid in cash and through paychecks with fake Social Security numbers, with cash payments being concealed by fake vendor invoices, the statement said.</p>
