Posted on 06/10/2005 4:16:01 PM PDT by TFFKAMM
(06-10) 15:09 PDT Aurora, Colo. (AP) --
A Saudi Arabian couple was in custody Friday, accused of turning a young Indonesian woman into a virtual slave, forcing her to clean, cook and care for their children while she was threatened and sexually assaulted.
A federal grand jury on Thursday indicted Homaidan Al-Turki, 36, and his wife, Sarah Khonaizan, 35, on charges of forced labor, document servitude and harboring an illegal immigrant.
Al-Turki also faces state charges including kidnapping, false imprisonment and extortion, as well as 12 charges of sexual assault. His wife faces some of the same charges. The two could be sentenced to life in prison if convicted.
Phone messages left Friday for their individual lawyers were not immediately returned.
U.S. Attorney's Office spokesman Jeff Dorschner said the Indonesian woman, who is in her 20s, came to the United States with the couple legally to perform domestic chores. But her U.S. visa was hidden from her by Al-Turki and Khonaizan, according to Thursday's indictment.
The woman was controlled by "a climate of fear and intimidation" that included sexual abuse and the belief that she would "suffer serious harm" if she did not perform her tasks, the indictment said.
The woman is believed to have lived with the couple from 2000 until November 2004, according to authorities. Dorschner said she is not in custody.
Authorities said the couple owed the woman nearly $93,000 in unpaid wages.
A neighbor, Vicki Lisman, said she believed the couple has four children three young girls and a teenage boy. In the summer, the mother and children would go to Saudi Arabia while the father stayed in Colorado, she said. Lisman said she had no idea another woman lived with the family...
(Excerpt) Read more at sfgate.com ...
Slavery is all perfectly legal according to Islam. Which makes me wonder why its the religion of choice for the disaffected black man?
Yeah, you're right. I'm sorry that my comment came out sounding flippant -- I realize that no amount of money is probably a fair settlement for what she's been through.
I'd stand up and cheer if a jury returned this verdict.
Ain't diversity great? Just because in their culture they can enslave people doesn't mean it's bad, you know. By the way, are any of them legal citizens? I'm for sending a lot of this trash back to their countries of origin where slavery and female circumcision and stoning are acceptable behaviors.
Animals who don't know how to act in a human society.
I didn't think your comment was flippant. You are right..she should sue the hell out of them!
What we need here is double convictions and maximum sentencing. A point must be made.
What total scumbags! Did I miss something here? They have 3 girls and a teenage boy? and they were ok with all of this? No visiting kids notice anything. I am not buying the neighbors story.
Mohammed, the founder of Islam, owned slaves. Anyone could be made a slave as long as they weren't muslim. Dark, black-skinned Africans were popular as guards for harems. Of course, the guards weren't just castrated. They had their genitals chopped off.
I'm a little confused by this article. In what country is it against the law to harbor an illegal immigrant?
yup , I predict that our guys will allow the children to be given to relatives in SArabia,BIG mistake,... then King&Queen will be unencumbered as they flee
Sorry, didn't see your post. Was this the one from Orlando, I think the "princess" was at Disney world, maybe?
OH MY GOD!
AND...what if someone had accidently dropped a Koran?!
I think we need Sean Penn covering this trial.
Hey, I think this couple ought to be our guest for another 10 or 15 years.
At least the USSC thinks so.
(/sarc.)
While I agree, I'm not sure how this is an example of a contrast between the purported progress of modernity and the constancy of the human condition: they were Saudi's, not exactly an modern crew.
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