A Ron DeSantis supporter had to fire undocumented staff who'd worked at his restaurant for decades after being fined $500,000. He thinks DeSantis' immigration crackdown has gone too far.

• A Florida restaurant owner was forced to fire undocumented staff after being fined $500,000, The Miami Herald reported.
• Richard Gonzmart, the owner of the restaurant, is an ardent supporter of Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis.

The owner of a 117-year-old Florida restaurant chain was forced to fire undocumented staff who had worked for his family for decades after being fined $500,000, The Miami Herald reported.

Richard Gonzmart is the head of the Family of Restaurants chain based in Tampa, which owns a number of landmark restaurants across the state.

He's also a strong supporter of Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, but he told the Herald DeSantis' immigration crackdown has gone too far and that he wants stronger protections for migrants.

Gonzmart was forced to fire 19 of his employees in 2021 after federal immigration officials showed up at one of his restaurants and discovered noncompliant work documents for those staffers. Seven of them had worked for Gonzmart's family for decades.

"We think they're legal, but when we had to check, we found seven people who have been with me 30 years — paying taxes, had children, grandchildren — and we were required to terminate them," he told the paper.

Gonzmart said that he's "very proud" of DeSantis, a 2024 GOP presidential candidate, "and everything he's done."

"But my concern is the governor putting in a law that says those who have an expired driver's license cannot renew it because they're no longer legal," he added. "They cannot work. Their papers are no longer legal."

He was referring to a Florida immigration law that requires businesses with more than 25 employees to check their employees' work eligibility using E-Verify. The law also says it's a felony to transport people who illegally entered the country to Florida.

DeSantis signed the law in May. He also made headlines for sending migrants from Texas to other Democrat-run states using Florida funding.