An Arlington couple has been indicted by a federal grand jury on accusations that they enticed a Nigerian woman to come to the United States and then forced her to serve them for little or no pay for nine years.
Emmanuel Nnaji, 50, and his wife, Ngozi, 45, have been charged with conspiracy, forced labor, document servitude, alien harboring and making false statements, according to a seven-count indictment returned late Wednesday.
According to a Justice Department news release, the couple promised the Nigerian woman, a widowed mother of six, a salary and support for her children, whom she was struggling to care for.
When the woman arrived, however, the couple isolated her and forced her to work long hours with no days off and little or no pay, the release said. They also monitored her contact with her family and refused her requests to return home or attend church, among other things, the release stated.
The indictment also alleges that Emmanuel Nnaji sexually assaulted the woman and made her fearful to call police.
Reached by phone Thursday, the man’s son, Emmanuel Nnaji Jr., 25, called the woman crazy and said the allegations against his father and stepmother are false.
"It is a bunch of bull," the younger Nnaji said. "The lady they brought over here was a crazy lady. I lived in their house for four of the nine years they are talking about. . . . Anytime we brought her into public, she acted a complete fool."
Emmanuel Nnaji Jr. said his father and stepmother are nurses who devote their lives to helping people. He said they are both from Nigeria and, on one of their visits home, they agreed to bring the woman to the U.S. in exchange for her help taking care of their six children.
He said that he never saw his father or stepmother abuse or mistreat the woman and that they gave her whatever she asked for. He said he believes that one of his father’s associates persuaded her to make the complaint.
"She ends up talking to one of my dad’s associates and they put it in her head that my dad kidnapped her," the younger Nnaji said. "One day, she burst out of the house and leaves the kids and runs to the FBI and makes up some bogus" story.
Emmanuel Nnaji Jr. said he also never heard the woman talk about her children.
"I found out she had kids from the FBI," he said.
Emmanuel Nnaji Jr. said his father and stepmother have been under investigation for two or three years and were recently arrested but are free on bail. He said he doesn’t know the woman’s whereabouts.
"I’m just tired of it," he said. "My dad is a good man."
If convicted, Emmanuel Nnaji and Ngozi Nnaji face a maximum sentence of up to 55 years in prison. Ngozi Nnaji, a Nigerian national, also faces deportation if she is convicted of any of the felonies, according to the news release.
Source- Star Telegraph USA
No comments:
Post a Comment