WLKM Radio 95.9 FM
Three people from Three Rivers have been charged for allegedly having labor trafficked a now-33-year-old woman brought to the United States from India under the auspices of marriage, Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel announced Tuesday.
Ikbahl Singh Machhal, age 40, Kartar Chand, 67, and Shila Devi, 66, were each charged with one count of human trafficking – forced labor, and one count of human trafficking enterprise.
The defendants allegedly began trafficking the woman in 2012 when the family forcibly moved her from Pennsylvania to Michigan when her husband, Machhal, and in-laws, Chand and Devi, came to own the Broadway Market in Three Rivers.
Shortly after arriving in Michigan, the woman began working at the convenience store, allegedly never receiving payment for her labor. The defendants are accused of requiring the victim to work eight to nine hours a day, seven days a week, against her will and under threat of severe physical, mental and emotional abuse, authorities said.
Investigators believe this continued for approximately eight years until the victim was able to leave her home with the assistance of the YWCA Kalamazoo and local law enforcement.
Three Rivers Police Officer Matt Kilbourn uncovered the scheme after he identified signs of labor trafficking during a hospital visit with the victim after suspected domestic violence.
