“We have reason to believe 38 people were working at the restaurants,” he said.

Prosecutors say ongoing surveillance also found dozens of Hispanic individuals who worked at the restaurants were living in nine apartments and two houses rented and paid for by Mucino and Sanchez-Ocampo or purchased by Marguin Sanchez.

Investigators said there was no evidence any of the defendants forced the employees to work long hours for low pay so charges of human trafficking were never considered.

“We don’t see any evidence of force, fraud or coercion,” said Sibley.

Counihan said the investigation took a turning point in August when Orchard Park Police encountered 13 people, including Sanchez and Sanchez-Ocampo, at a school playground and discovered many of them could only produce Mexican identification.

Ultimately, 10 of the 13 were taken into custody.

Two months later, one of Buffalo’s most popular restaurant owners is also facing federal charges.