Two people who owned garment industry businesses in South Los Angeles between 2017 and 2022 were charged Wednesday in connection with an alleged wage theft case filed by a new unit that will specialize in focusing on businesses in which workers are being underpaid, Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascón announced.
Park -- who owned a sewing contracting business named HTA Fashion that performed most of the sewing for Lee's business -- is charged with two felony counts of grand theft of wages from two employees exceeding $950 and one count each of perjury by declaration and procuring and offering a false or forged instrument.
Prosecutors allege that Park and Lee perjured themselves in their Garment Manufacturers and Contractors Registration applications by stating that they had not been cited for or settled a labor code violation for unpaid wages by the state Department of Industrial Relations and that Lee had failed to list Park's sewing business as a sub-contractor in the same applications.