LEELANAU COUNTY, MI -- An investigation stemming back to 2006 is paying off big for the Leelanau County Sheriff's Office.

About four years back, Detective Sergeant Clint Kerr sparked an illegal immigrant investigation of a grounds-keeping service called RCI; a company he discovered was staffed almost exclusively with illegal aliens.

“I had a citizen that knew me, trusted me, give me some information. That's all they wanted to do with it. I convinced them to speak with federal agents and that's what started the whole thing,” Kerr said.

It later surfaced that RCI had employed over 1,000 illegal immigrants and failed to pay taxes in excess of $15.5 million. Authorities seized $3.5 million dollars in cash and property. And thanks to Sergeant Kerr’s efforts, more than $180,000 was forked over to the Leelanau County Sheriff's Office.

“It's great that in the tough budget times we are able to have the cushion of money to use to get items that may not be approved in the budget otherwise. Things that make our jobs easier, make us better investigators and keep us safe” said Kerr.

The successful investigation also resulted in the prosecution of RCI President Richard Rosenbaum, who was sentenced to 10 years in jail.