Indian couple in US fined crores, sentenced to 11 Years for luring cousin with false promises of education

A US court has sentenced an Indian-American couple for coercing their relative into working at their gas station and convenience store for over three years under false pretenses of enrolling him in school. Harmanpreet Singh, 31, received a prison sentence of 135 months (11.25 years), while Kulbir Kaur, 43 sentenced to 87 months (7.25 years). They also ordered to pay their cousin, the victim, USD 225,210.76 (approximately Rs 1.87 crores) in restitution. According to the US Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, the defendants exploited the victim’s genuine desire for education and a better life, depriving him of basic human necessities and freedom. The couple has since divorced.

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Indian-American Couple Sentenced for exploiting cousin in forced labor scheme

Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division stated that the defendants exploited their relationship with the victim to lure him to the United States with false promises of helping him enroll in school. Upon his arrival, they confiscated his immigration documents and used threats, physical force, and mental abuse to coerce him into working long hours for minimal pay. Clarke emphasized that this sentence serves as a strong message that forced labor will not be tolerated in our communities.

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Jailed for forced labor, abuse, and coercion of relative with False Education Promises

The evidence revealed that the defendants used various coercive methods, including confiscating the victim’s immigration documents and subjecting him to physical abuse, threats, and degrading living conditions to compel him to work. They left the victim to sleep in a back office of their store for days, limited his access to food, denied medical care and education, monitored him with surveillance equipment, and refused his requests to return to India, causing him to overstay his visa.

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