The owners of Aloun Farms have been indicted in a case involving human trafficking of agricultural workers from Thailand to Hawaii, according to the Department of Justice.
The indictments are for owners Alec Souphone Sou and Mike Mankone Sou and William Khoo. Officials said Khoo recruited laborers from Thailand.
The men lured the workers to the farm with promises of lucrative jobs and then threatened the employees "through threats of serious economic harm," officials said. The men charged the workers and their families a recruitment fee with debts secured by using their homes and properties in Thailand, officials said.
When the workers arrived in Hawaii, the Sous confiscated their passports and threatened to send them back to Thailand, where they could face serious debt problems because of the recruitment fees, officials said.
The two Sous face up to 15 years in prison. Khoo faces up to 10 years in prison.
The FBI and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security Immigration and Customs Enforcement is investigating the case.
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