New Delhi: An Indian-American couple has been sentenced to prison by a US court for coercing their relative to work at their gas station and convenience store for over three years.
While 31-year-old Harmanpreet Singh was sentenced to 135 months in prison, Kulbir Kaur (43) was handed an 87-month jail term.
The court has also ordered the duo to pay the victim, Harmanpreet’s cousin, USD 225,210.76 (Rs 1.87 crore approximately).
According to evidence presented during the trial, the couple brought the victim, then a minor, to the United States in 2018 on the pretext of helping him enrol in a school. They then confiscated his immigration documents and subjected him to threats, physical force and mental abuse, and forced him to work long hours for minimal pay, PTI reported quoting Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division sources.
“The defendants exploited their relationship with the victim to lure him to the United States with false promises that they would help enrol him in school. The sentence is a strong message that such forced labour will not be tolerated in our communities,” Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division said.
During the hearing, US Attorney Jessica D Aber for the Eastern District of Virginia said the defendants preyed on the victim’s earnest desire to attain an education and improve his life. But they deprived him of the most basic human needs and robbed him of his freedom.
