California Couple charged with human trafficking, wage theft

Amarjit and Balwinder Mann are accused of human trafficking. 

An Indian American couple has been charged with human trafficking for locking a man in a liquor store, where he worked 15 hour shifts, seven days a week, slept in a storage room, bathed in a mop bucket, and was never paid.

The husband and wife, Amarjit and Balwinder Mann, both 66, are accused of threatening the victim with deportation if he told the truth to law enforcement. The Manns face charges of labor human trafficking, witness intimidation, and wage theft involving a total of four victims. 

“Slavery officially was abolished in 1865,” District Attorney Jeff Rosen said. “Tragically, we are seeing examples of it in 2020. My Office will prosecute anyone to the fullest extent of the law who practices this kind of criminal and inhumane exploitation.”

The suspects, residents of Gilroy, Calif., were arraigned Nov. 9. If convicted of the felonies, they could face prison time.

An investigation estimates that the suspects had stolen more than $150,000 in wages from the victim and three other employees. The Manns engaged in predatory recruitment of their workers from India and lured them with promises of travel and financial independence. 

In late February 2020, an Alcoholic Beverage Control inspection discovered the victim at M&M Liquors located on Westwood Drive in Gilroy. The agent contacted a man who appeared to be living in a small storage room in the back area of the store – a major red flag for human trafficking. 

Agents noted a thin mattress lying over milk crates, an office desk contained folded clothes in each drawer. On top of the desk there were pots and pans for cooking and next to the desk, there was a mop sink with a faucet approximately three feet off the ground and a shampoo bottle. Investigators later learned the victim was bathing from the mop sink. 

The store where the victim was forced to work.

The investigation further concluded that the man had flown from India in 2019 expecting to travel to the U.S. with the couple. Instead they took his money and passport and put him to work without pay or a key to leave the liquor store at night.

The victim, whose name was not revealed by authorities, eventually mustered up the courage to leave the store and flee to a safehouse, with the help of human trafficking advocates. He wrote an affidavit about his situation, in which he said he continued to work for the Manns because he had no other options, and did not want to tell his family back in India what had happened to him. While entrapped, according to the affidavit, the victim was allowed to leave the store just once: to go to the San Jose gurdwara on New Year’s Day.

Three other men – two who worked at the liquor store and one who worked at the market across the street - told agents that they worked marathon hours and were paid a pittance. One said he had no idea about the concept of a minimum wage.