Wichita ? Five workers from Cessna Aircraft Co. were indicted Wednesday on federal immigration charges after the company notified U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement of a possible discrepancy in their employment documents, officials said.

The illegal immigrants, all from Mexico, were arrested Tuesday at the company’s plant in Wichita, ICE said. Some of them were longtime Cessna employees.

Pete Baird, assistant special agent in charge at ICE’s Office of Investigations in Kansas City, Mo., said in a statement that Cessna management followed proper procedures.

“It is illegal for employers to knowingly hire or continue to employ illegal aliens,” Baird said. “Employers can also be subject to criminal prosecution.”

The company is cooperating in the investigation, the agency said.

Cessna spokesman Robert Stangarone said the company recently received an anonymous tip that those five workers had used false documents to get their jobs. After an internal review of the employment records of those employees, Cessna notified immigration authorities, he said.

U.S. Atty. Eric Melgren said in a statement that employers are becoming more aware of illegal immigrants who commit federal crimes such as document fraud and identity theft to obtain U.S. jobs.

Indicted were:

¢ Pedro Aguilar-Martinez, 51, of Mexico, on one count of using false documents to be employed in the United States, four counts of aggravated identity theft, one count of making a false statement on an employment verification form, one count of misusing a Social Security number and one count of making a false claim of U.S. citizenship. The crimes are alleged to have occurred May 16.

¢ Robert Guiterrez, 47, of Mexico, on a charge of possessing false documents as evidence of employment in the United States, two counts of aggravated identity theft, one count of causing false wage information to be provided to the Social Security Administration, one count of making a false statement on employment eligibility forms, one count of making a false statement to the government and one count of misusing a Social Security number. The charges allege the crimes were committed at various times from March 1999 to May 2006.

¢ Jose L. Comacho, 51, of Mexico, on one count of using fraudulent documents as evidence of employment, one count of making a false statement on an employment eligibility form, and one count of making a false claim of U.S. citizenship. The allegations cover March 1999 to May 2006.

¢ Fernando Lopez Inigo, 32, of Mexico, on one count of using false documents to be employed in the United States, two counts of aggravated identity theft, one count of reporting false wage information to Social Security, one count of making a false statement regarding alien registration status, one count of making a false statement to the government and one count of misusing a Social Security number. The crimes are alleged to have happened May 1999 to May 2006.

¢ Homar Vargas-Blanco, 27, of Mexico, on one count of possession of false documents as evidence of employment, two counts of aggravated identity theft, one count of causing false wage information to be reported to Social Security, one count of making a false statement regarding alien registration status and one count of making a false statement to the government. The crimes are alleged to have occurred from July 2001 to May 2006.