By IANS
New York : As an Indian American couple convicted of slavery awaits sentencing, the bail for the wife was revoked and she was sent to jail Thursday. They had illegally kept two Indonesian maids at their Long Island mansion here and had tortured them for five years.
The couple Varsha Sabhnani and her husband Mahender – who run an international perfumery business – were arrested last May and charged by federal authorities.
The federal judge ruled Thursday that because the jury found Varsha was the one who inflicted physical punishment on her Indonesian housemaids, she was no longer eligible to remain free.
But the judge ruled that since Mahender did not physically harm the two maids they kept as slaves, he was permitted to remain free on bail – albeit continuing under house arrest – until both are sentenced March 28.
The couple were convicted of all charges in a 12-count indictment that included forced labour, conspiracy, involuntary servitude and harbouring aliens.
Each is likely to get around 20 years in jail.
The government will also seize their mansion in Muttontown area of Long Island in this city as it has been used in the commission of the crime.
Defence attorneys have said they intend to appeal the convictions.
Meanwhile, the Sabhnanis’ two victims, Samirah and Enung, may be granted US citizenship.
Currently, the two women are being looked after by Catholic charities, which are under contract with the Justice Department to look after victims of human trafficking.
They are likely to get a special visa, which lets victims of such abuse stay in the country for four years at the end of which they get green cards.
Neither woman has any money and authorities are trying to calculate what the Sabhnanis owe them in back wages. That could be a big sum even if it is calculated on the basis of the minimum wage.