Three family members in Virginia were sentenced to federal prison Monday on forced labor charges after they coerced a Pakistani woman to be a servant inside their home for more than 12 years. The defendants are the mother and brothers of the victim's husband, who was not involved in the years-long abuse against the woman.
Zahida Aman, 80, was sentenced to 12 years in prison, Mohammed Rehan Chaudhri, 48, received 10 years in prison, and Mohammad Nauman Chaudhri, 55, was sentenced to five years in prison, according to a news release from the US Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia.
Additionally, the court ordered Aman and two of her sons to pay the victim $250,000 in restitution for back wages and other financial losses she incurred because of the defendants' criminal conduct.
The trio was indicted in federal court on charges of conspiracy, forced labor, and document servitude in 2019.
According to court documents, the family members "conspired to force" the woman, identified as MB in the court documents, to clean their home in Midlothian, Virginia, and provide additional services from March 2002 until August 2014, ABC 8 News reported.
“The defendants exploited someone who should have been a loved family member to force her to work in their home for over 14 years,” said Jessica D. Aber, US attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, at a court hearing when the defendants were convicted in May 2022.
“Forced labor, the modern-day equivalent of slavery, has no place in our country or district, and we will stop at nothing to prosecute those that commit these or similar crimes," Aber continued. "Let this conviction serve as a light to survivors impacted by labor trafficking and as a deterrent to those conspiring to commit heinous labor trafficking crimes.”
Nauman Chaudhri's lawyer said his client is 'not evil' after Monday's sentencing.
“This case was complicated and featured many issues and circumstances that commonly present themselves in difficult divorce cases,” Craig Sampson told McClatchy News on Tuesday, per the Miami Herald, adding that his client “has the love and support of many friends and colleagues.”
MB was a citizen living in Pakistan who had an arranged marriage to her husband, identified as SC in the court documents, on or around January 2002. He then applied for and obtained a visa for his wife to live "lawfully" in the US with him. At the time, Aman gave the woman some advice on how to keep her husband happy.
"If you want to be happy in your married life, the way to your husband’s heart is through me … and if you want him happy, you have to make me happy,” Aman said per court documents, according to the newspaper.
The couple moved to Virginia in March 2002 and shared a home with the defendants.
The three family members lived with the woman and her husband at 2700 London Park Drive in Medlothian. Aman reportedly “asserted her role as the leader and organizer of the family," according to a sentencing memo, per the Miami Herald. She became the head of the household after SC moved to Pennsylvania in 2006 and then moved to California in 2008, moving both times to practice medicine.
MB had temporary immigration status in the US, reportedly lived in fear inside the home as Aman took away her immigration papers, jewelry, and personal items, the news release stated. Additionally, the defendants threatened the woman with deportation if she did not obey their demands and threatened to separate her from her children.
The family members forced the woman to perform services and "verbally assaulted and physically abused the victim. The defendants slapped, kicked, and pushed the victim, even beat her with a wooden board, and, on one occasion, hog-tied her hands and feet and dragged her down the stairs in front of her children," the sentencing memo stated.
The family members also forced the couple's four children to abuse their mother.
According to the court documents, the children "would suffer serious harm" if MB did not perform the services inside the home. She was "alienated" from her children, and a few were forced to take part in the abuse. They were also "punished" if they "expressed a 'need' for their mother," the news release stated.
“The defendants exploited the victim’s trust and inflicted cruel and inhumane physical and mental abuse on her, all so they could keep her working in their home as their domestic servant,” Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke said in a news release in May 2022.
It was unclear where the defendants will serve their sentences.
If you or someone you know has been the victim of domestic abuse, you can find help and support at DVIS.org, the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-7233, or by contacting your local women's shelter (domesticshelters.org).
