CLEVELAND, Ohio — FBI agents have expanded their investigation in Ohio after smashing an alleged sophisticated slave labor ring they charge used smuggled Guatemalan teenagers, some as young as 14, who were forced to work 12-hour days, seven days a week on a series of large central Ohio egg farms.
During the investigation, federal agents rescued eight teenagers and two young adults during a series of raids that found the workers living in horrific conditions in dilapidated mobile home trailers that were owned by the smugglers, according to a 15-count federal grand jury indictment issue on July 2.
The indictment charged four suspects with running the "slave labor conspiracy" and a smuggling operation that began in 2011. The workers were discovered working on egg farms owned by Trillium Farms, one of the largest egg producers in Ohio.
The indictment stated Trillium had fully cooperated with the FBI. A company statement issued following the indictments stated it had been misled by the suspects. Chuck Renken, director of human resources for Trillium Farms, said, "Our contract with the (suspects’) company was terminated by Trillium Farms, and the company is no longer working with us."
In the brief statement, he said once the farm was contacted by the FBI, they "immediately cooperated and assisted in the investigation. That work led to the swift identification and same-day rescue of the employees believed to be working against their will."
Following the federal indictments, FBI agents and Homeland Security investigations swarmed several farms and arrested three of the four suspects including the slave labor ringleader. A fourth suspect was arrested days later in Iowa.
The indictment charges Aroldo Castillo-Serrano, 33, of Pecos, Texas, as head of the human trafficking organization; Conrado Salgado Soto, 52, of Raymond, Ohio; Ana Angelica Pedro Juan, 21, of Columbus; and Pablo Duran Jr., 23, of Marysville. Following the arrests, the four suspects – three of them allegedly illegal Guatemalan immigrants – were brought before U.S. District Court Judge James Carr of the Northern District of Ohio, in Toledo. Duran, who was arrested in Iowa, is an American citizen.
The judge ordered the suspects to be held without bail. The suspects have been jailed at an undisclosed area location under the supervision of the U.S. Marshals Service.
In an attempt to hide their operations, the four suspects had allegedly set up a series of companies, two just last summer, in order to win subcontracting labor services agreements with Trillium. The companies include Huba Corporate Services, Inc.; Second Generation Farm Services, LLC; Rabbit Cleaning Services, Inc.; and Papagos, Inc.
Both Huba and Second Generation are owned by Duran, the indictment stated, adding that Rabbit Cleaning is owned by Bartolo Dominguez, a co-defendant indicted a separate unrelated case.
The indictment stated Trillium contracted with Huba and Second Generation to provide the victims to the Trillium’s egg farms. In return, Huba and Second Generation hired Papagos, Rabbit Cleaning and still unidentified "other subcontractors" to recruit the laborers. The two companies also provided transportation for the workers between the trailer homes and the egg farms as well as supervising the workers at the farms.
Castillo-Serrano also owned a number of mobile home trailers at the 43-acre Oakridge Estates Mobile Home Park, near Marion, where the smuggled workers were forced to live. Agents said the workers were forced in live in the mobile homes, and at times without heat in the winter.
The mobile home park has more than 200 mobile home lots for rent or for sale. The park owners could not be located for additional information.
The indictment also charges Castillo-Serrano with forcing the alien workers to turn over their weekly farm earnings to the suspects, and if they refused, that they were threatened with violence.
One of the suspects was sent to Guatemala to allegedly recruit the immigrant workers with promises of good-paying agricultural jobs and schooling. The workers were then charged smuggling fees of up to $16,000 each and, on some occasions, the smugglers forced parents of the teenagers to turn over deeds of their Guatemalan property as payment or collateral, until the smuggling fees were settled.
Trillium Farms has 9 million laying hens with expansion under way to house up to 13 million birds when the construction is completed, and currently provides 7 billion eggs to the nation each year, accounting for Ohio being the second-largest egg state behind Iowa.
Two Ohio families own and operate the privately held Trillium Farms. The smuggled workers were transported daily to Trillium’s facilities in Licking County as well as egg farms in LaRue, Mount Victory, Croton and in Hardin’s County’s Goshen Township, according to the indictment.
The smuggled workers were reportedly forced to clean chicken coops, load and unload crates of chickens – some very heavy for their age – and de-beak and vaccinate the birds.
It could not be learned if the suspects had previously used other undocumented laborers or whether more were used in other farm operations around the state and/or on egg farms in Iowa. A U.S. attorney’s office spokesman declined to go into details about the investigation, except to say it was "ongoing."
The indictment accuses the suspects of running the "forced labor conspiracy," witness tampering, making false statement to FBI agents and various smuggling charges. If convicted, suspects face up to 30 years in prison and could be deported to Guatemala once they serve out their sentences. They also face forfeiture of their company assets.
The rescued victims are under the care of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, the Office of Refugee Resettlement Sponsor Care Program. A spokesman said he could not give details about the victims or what may happen to them once the case is settled.
"They are being well cared-for and will be witnesses at the trial," he said.
