The father-son owners of two Woburn restaurants pleaded guilty to a conspiracy to smuggle Brazilian nationals into the United States.

Jesse James Moraes, 66, and son Hugo Giovanni Moraes, 45, own and operate both Taste of Brazil — Tudo Na Brasa and The Dog House Bar and Grill. They were indicted on the charges in November 2022 in a case that began a year and a half earlier on April 19, 2021, with the indictment of Chelbe Williams Moraes, who a federal source of information described as “the boss” or the “jefe” of the smuggling operation.

While the case against Chelbe Moraes is still pending, Jesse James Moraes and Hugo Giovanni Moraes entered into plea agreements on Wednesday, which they finalized by pleading guilty in federal court in Boston on Thursday.

Federal prosecutors say that the operation was a cash cow, with the Woburn smugglers charging fees of between $12,000 and $22,000 per illegal immigrant client. They had the Brazilian customers enter the United States through Mexico. The migrants were instructed, according to federal law enforcement, to make fraudulent claims of asylum or even pretend familial relationships where there were none, and to have fake U.S. contacts handy for immigration authorities.

If the border crossing was successful, prosecutors say, the father-son duo would then help their customers with long-term housing and even hook them up with jobs at their restaurants, for which they would be paid under-the-table in cash.

“The co-conspirators agreed that some of the migrants could pay off some of their smuggling fee once they reached the United States, which they did by direct payment, having their wages withheld, or by collection by relatives and other associates within and outside the United States,” according to the U.S. Attorney’s office in Boston.

Jesse Moraes also pleaded guilty to money laundering conspiracy, which prosecutors say involved transferring funds into and out of the United States to promote the immigrant smuggling conspiracy.