Houston major hub for human trafficking

Houston Chronicle ^ | Oct. 28, 2007 | SUSAN CARROLL

[SwinneySwitch]

Large ring kept up to 120 women in virtual slavery

The picture, with its implicit threat, was all it took.

It was taken just before Christmas 2004. She had been thinking about running away from the windowless bar on Houston's northwest side, where he kept her and other women, forcing some of them into prostitution while they paid off their "debts."

But Maximino "Chimino" Mondragon knew of her plans.

Carrying a camera and Christmas presents for the woman's daughter, he had appeared unannounced at her family's home in El Salvador. The woman, who was not identified by authorities, told investigators that Mondragon had talked his way into the home by saying the gifts were from her.

"By the way," Mondragon reportedly asked her parents, "would you mind taking a photo of me with the little girl?"

There were no more plans of escaping.

With similar threats, Mondragon and a network of family members and associates operated one of the largest human trafficking rings in U.S. history in which as many as 120 women were held captive and coerced to work off their smuggling debts. Some of the women were raped and forced to have abortions.

Mondragon's operation collapsed in November 2005 when the women were freed and he and seven other defendants from El Salvador and Honduras were arrested on federal human trafficking charges.

All eight defendants in the case have pleaded guilty in Houston courtrooms, but only one woman — a Honduran accused of providing the abortions — has been sentenced. The remaining sentencings are scheduled for this winter.

Houston a trafficking hub

The Mondragon case underscores the need to raise awareness about human trafficking, which still largely operates "under the radar" despite major efforts to combat the crime in recent years, said Ed Gallagher, the deputy chief....

[-=SoylentSquirrel=-]

[cbkaty]

Hmmmmmmmmm....doing jobs Americans won’t do?

[MrB]

A person posing as a 13 yr old girl calls Planned Parenthood to get an abortion - she says she is pregnant by her 22 yr old boy friend. Planned Parenthood says “don’t tell us that when you come in”.

Do you think they’ll do any different with the human trafficking victims?

[stevie_d_64]

Proabably not...

But they “habla” a lot better in these cases...

[Centurion2000]

Enslaving the people Americans won't enslave.

Gotta wonder if the media outcry would be far larger if these were African slaves.

[SwinneySwitch]

The LSM doesn’t know there are, or ever were, any other slaves besides African-American.

[gubamyster]

ping

[BellStar]

League City, Just outside Houston has ordered the Police Dept. not to bother the huge number of illegals on corners in it’s city waiting for Houston-ions to come hire them. Galveston County has long been an underground rail way for illegals who are aided by the Roman Catholic church and housed in the church.Come election time city/county fathers in Galveston County should duck and cover as this issue will go nuclear.