A 20-year-old student from India was held captive by three Indian-origin men in the United States and was repeatedly brutally beaten up, starved, and forced into labour work for months, as per a report by the IANS.
The three accused are now facing criminal charges for forcing the victim to work at three homes in St Charles County in Missouri state. The student was rescued by the police officers on Wednesday, November 29, County Prosecuting Attorney Joseph McCulloch said.
McCulloch charged Venkatesh R Sattaru (35), Sravanvarma Penumetcha (23), and Nikhil V Penmatsa (27) with crimes related to abuse through forced labour, first-degree domestic assault, and kidnapping. The judge also said that such an act is inhumane.
What are the charges?
The main suspect in the case, Sattaru, was identified as a cousin of the victim and his visa sponsor. He has been additionally charged with human trafficking for slavery and contributing to human trafficking through misuse of documentation.
The three defendants were accused of confining and abusing the victim at three different homes owned by Sattaru in Defiance, Dardenne Prairie and O’Fallon, starting April 2023.
Brutal torture
The judge said that the victim was forced to do menial tasks and perform remote work for Sattaru's IT Company, and was frequently beaten by them.
“They beat him with their fists, they stomped on him, they beat him with electrical wiring, with PVC pipes,” McCulloch said, adding that the three suspects are wealthy and have political connections in India.
The three suspects are being held at the St Charles County Jail without bond.
