Was accused of trying to help flout immigration laws
Lorraine Henderson had been suspended from her job as Boston area port director for Customs and Border Protection. (Josh Reynolds for The Boston Globe)
A former Department of Homeland Security official once in charge of keeping some of New England’s key ports secure from illegal immigration was found guilty yesterday of deliberately encouraging her Brazilian housekeeper to illegally stay in the country.
“I’m stunned,’’ said Lorraine Henderson, 52, of Salem, who could face up to five years in prison for her conviction. She declined to comment further and was consoled by about 10 relatives and friends, some of whom cried as they embraced her.
Henderson, who rose through the ranks of the US Customs Service after starting as a clerk at age 17, testified during the six-day trial that she did nothing wrong. She was suspended without pay from her $140,000-a-year job as Boston area port director for Customs and Border Protection after her arrest 15 months ago...
