An immigrant who sued the bond service Libre by Nexus wears a GPS ankle monitor in 2017. A Virginia company that posts bonds for jailed immigrants facing deportation has been ordered to pay more than $800 million in restitution and penalties for fraudulent practices such as getting Spanish-speaking clients to sign English-language contracts that they didn’t fully understand and requiring them to pay $420 a month for GPS ankle monitors.
In a ruling Monday, U.S. District Judge Elizabeth K. Dillon in Roanoke ordered the company and its principals to pay more than $811 million. The judge found that the company owed the consumer protection bureau $231 million in restitution, of which Virginia is seeking $14 million, Massachusetts $3.3 million and New York $13.7 million to reimburse the company’s clients.