PORTLAND, OR -- FBI, INS and DEA Raid Pacific NW Slave Ring
Nov 1, 2013 22:34:03 GMT -8
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Post by Aidan on Nov 1, 2013 22:34:03 GMT -8
PORTLAND, OR (KPTV, Fox 12) October 24, 2013, Thursday -- We have new information about the series of raids Thursday night at dozens of locations all along the Western Seaboard.
Undocumented females were allegedly forced to manufacture counterfeit goods and have sex, and it was all for profit. Now, over one hundred suspects are in federal custody.
An indictment alleges this sex slavery operation has been running since 1999. In that time, officials say more than $127 million is estimated to have passed through the hands of the accused as young women and children from China were brought here and forced to work in the manufacture of counterfeit products, pirated DVDs and even some cases of prostitution.
"I think most of you will agree that nowhere in the world, especially right here in Portland, in our United States, should any human being be trafficked for profit or used as a reusable commodity," said FBI special agent in charge Charles Stanford.
Investigators say over 130 women and girls were rescued Thursday night at fourteen different locations, spread throughout California, Washington and Oregon. Some were as young as just 14 and 15 years old. Most were at a bar which investigators say was also a brothel.
Federal agents say they were smuggled here from China with the promise of a better life, but then they were forced into slavery. They were reportedly kept in locked rooms and apartments, and beaten if they did not perform to a customer's satisfaction.
According to a 217-page federal indictment, "...this beating would happen to each of them if one of them did not produce products that could pass cursory inspection."
Some were told they owed a debt to those who brought them here, that they must repay thousands of dollars before they would be released. Some were threatened with never seeing their children or families again.
One of the locations in Seattle, WA included a bar, with several apartments on the upper floor, which also functioned as a brothel. Authorities say that clients were told the involved girls were between 14 and 17 years old.
Those living near the location just off Telephone Road say they have suspected for some time something awful was going on. Why else, they say, would you see condom wrappers so often in the parking lot.
One woman, who doesn't want to be identified, says she has even reported it to police.
"I called several times and no one has done nothing till now," she said.
In all, 114 defendants now face sex trafficking, money laundering and other charges in five states. The FBI is still looking for one more man, Alfonso Juarez. He's accused of being one of the traffickers who arranged transport into the country by cargo and fishing vessels.
Meanwhile, Li Xiu Ying, a Chinese American Civil Rights lawyer who is related to eight of the defendants, says they are innocent, and has successfully appealed for political refugee status for most of the women involved. Authorities say they are thoroughly screening backgrounds on all the women rescued, and will review asylum requests on a case-by-case basis.
"It's hard. You can't do anything, you can't even talk to them. I have 2 kids I have to support," Ying said.
Neighbors are relieved to see the arrests made.
"I'm glad that somebody is coming in to help the girls that nobody else has been helping. It's an international problem, and to find it in the neighborhood where I teach little girls is very stressful for me," neighbor Stacey Peterson said.
If you know where Juarez may be, a reward is being offered for information that leads to his arrest.
Undocumented females were allegedly forced to manufacture counterfeit goods and have sex, and it was all for profit. Now, over one hundred suspects are in federal custody.
An indictment alleges this sex slavery operation has been running since 1999. In that time, officials say more than $127 million is estimated to have passed through the hands of the accused as young women and children from China were brought here and forced to work in the manufacture of counterfeit products, pirated DVDs and even some cases of prostitution.
"I think most of you will agree that nowhere in the world, especially right here in Portland, in our United States, should any human being be trafficked for profit or used as a reusable commodity," said FBI special agent in charge Charles Stanford.
Investigators say over 130 women and girls were rescued Thursday night at fourteen different locations, spread throughout California, Washington and Oregon. Some were as young as just 14 and 15 years old. Most were at a bar which investigators say was also a brothel.
Federal agents say they were smuggled here from China with the promise of a better life, but then they were forced into slavery. They were reportedly kept in locked rooms and apartments, and beaten if they did not perform to a customer's satisfaction.
According to a 217-page federal indictment, "...this beating would happen to each of them if one of them did not produce products that could pass cursory inspection."
Some were told they owed a debt to those who brought them here, that they must repay thousands of dollars before they would be released. Some were threatened with never seeing their children or families again.
One of the locations in Seattle, WA included a bar, with several apartments on the upper floor, which also functioned as a brothel. Authorities say that clients were told the involved girls were between 14 and 17 years old.
Those living near the location just off Telephone Road say they have suspected for some time something awful was going on. Why else, they say, would you see condom wrappers so often in the parking lot.
One woman, who doesn't want to be identified, says she has even reported it to police.
"I called several times and no one has done nothing till now," she said.
In all, 114 defendants now face sex trafficking, money laundering and other charges in five states. The FBI is still looking for one more man, Alfonso Juarez. He's accused of being one of the traffickers who arranged transport into the country by cargo and fishing vessels.
Meanwhile, Li Xiu Ying, a Chinese American Civil Rights lawyer who is related to eight of the defendants, says they are innocent, and has successfully appealed for political refugee status for most of the women involved. Authorities say they are thoroughly screening backgrounds on all the women rescued, and will review asylum requests on a case-by-case basis.
"It's hard. You can't do anything, you can't even talk to them. I have 2 kids I have to support," Ying said.
Neighbors are relieved to see the arrests made.
"I'm glad that somebody is coming in to help the girls that nobody else has been helping. It's an international problem, and to find it in the neighborhood where I teach little girls is very stressful for me," neighbor Stacey Peterson said.
If you know where Juarez may be, a reward is being offered for information that leads to his arrest.