Major Human Trafficking Bust in U.S.

Two U.S. citizens, two Moldovaians, and eight Uzbekistans charged with RICO Act

May 28, 2009

KANSAS CITY MO NEWS -- According to a 45-count indictment that was made public on May 27, 2009, after initial arrests and court appearances. Twelve defendants, including eight Uzbekistan nationals, have been charged with RICO (Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act) charges relating to labor racketeering, human trafficking, illegal immigration, and other violations in 14 states. The indictment was returned by a federal grand jury in Kansas City, Missouri on May 6, 2009. Additionally, seven of the defendants are accused of aided and abetted each other to obtain the labor and services of a person by means of serious harm and threats of serious harm, and by means of the abuse and threatened abuse of through law and legal processes.

Matt J. Whitworth, Acting United States Attorney for the Western District of Missouri announcing the indictment said:

"This RICO indictment alleges an extensive and profitable criminal enterprise in which hundreds of illegal aliens were employed at hotels and other businesses across the country. The defendants allegedly used false information to acquire fraudulent work visas for these foreign nationals. Many of their employees were allegedly victims of human trafficking who were coerced to work in violation of the terms of their visa without proper pay and under the threat of deportation. The defendants also required them to reside together in crowded, substandard and overpriced apartments."

James Gibbons, Acting Special Agent-in-Charge, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement - Chicago Office added:

"The indictment alleges that this criminal enterprise lured victims to the United States under the guise of legitimate jobs and a better life, only to treat them as modern-day slaves under the threat of deportation. The alleged conspiracy not only victimized foreign workers, but also defrauded U.S. businesses and displaced legal workers in the name of profit. ICE is committed to working closely with its law enforcement partners to target and dismantle human trafficking organizations that flout our nation's immigration laws.

Furthermore, the indictment alleges since January 2001, Abrorkhodja Askarkhodjaev has been the leader of a criminal enterprise and directed the rest of the co-defendants in carrying out unlawful activities to further the enterprise. Among the criminal acts alleged in a pattern of racketeering activity are forced labor trafficking, identity theft, harboring illegal aliens, mail fraud, conspiracy to commit money laundering, transporting illegal aliens, visa fraud, extortion, interstate travel in aid of racketeering, wire fraud and inducing the illegal entry of foreign nationals. Many of the workers were employed at hotels in the Kansas City area and in Branson, Missouri.

According to the indictment, Askarkhodjaev owned and operated a labor leasing company, Giant Labor Solutions, in Kansas City, Missouri. Through Giant Labor and a dozen other businesses that he associated with or controlled as part of the alleged criminal enterprise, Askarkhodjaev allegedly secured fraudulent labor leasing contracts from clients in the hotel/resort, casino and construction industries in Missouri, Kansas, Alabama, Arizona, California, Colorado, Florida, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, South Carolina and Wyoming. The criminal enterprise allegedly used illegal aliens to fulfill labor contracts for housekeeping, cleaning services and other duties. The workforce was predominately comprised of foreign nationals, the indictment says, who either entered the United States illegally, overstayed their visas, or did not have legal authorization to reside or work in their specific locations during their term of employment.

Twelve defendants named in the indictment are as follows:

• Abrorkhodja Askarkhodjaev, 30, an Uzbekistan national residing in Mission, Kansas
• Nodir Yunusov, 22, an Uzbekistan national residing in Mission, Kansas
• Rustamjon Shukurov, 21, an Uzbekistan national residing in Mission, Kansas
• Ilkham Fazilov, 44, an Uzbekistan national residing in Kansas City, Missouri
• Nodirbek Abdoollayev, 27, an Uzbekistan national residing in Kansas City, Missouri
• Viorel Simon, 27, an Moldova national residing in Kansas City, Kansas
• Alexandru Frumasache, 23, an Moldova national residing in Kansas City, Kansas
• Abdukakhar Azizkhodjaev, 49, an Uzbekistan national residing in Panama City, Florida
• Sandjar Agzamov, 27, an Uzbekistan national
• Jakhongir Kakhkharov, 29, an Uzbekistan national
• Kristin Dougherty, 49, of Ellisville, Missouri
• Andrew Cole, 53, of St. Charles, Missouri

Furthermore, Sandjar Agzamov and Jakhongir Kakhkharov recently left the United States and are living abroad.

Also, named in the indictment are three companies owned or controlled by Askarkhodjaev.

• Giant Labor Solutions LLC, headquartered in Kansas City, Missouri
• Crystal Management Inc, headquartered in Mission, Kansas
• Five Star Cleaning LLC, headquartered in Overland Park, Kansas

The federal indictment also alleges that Askarkhodjaev, Yunusov, Shukurov, Fazilov, Simon, Cole and Frumusache aided and abetted each other to obtain the labor and services of a person by means of serious harm and threats of serious harm, and by means of the abuse and threatened abuse of law and legal process.

According to the indictment, the enterprise required the foreign nationals to work where the enterprise assigned them. However, the enterprise threatened to cancel the immigration status of foreign nationals who refused to work as directed by the enterprise. The enterprise allegedly charged the foreign nationals numerous fees. It further profited, the indictment says, by requiring the foreign national workers to reside in apartments it exclusively secured, controlled and for which it charged exorbitant rents. According to the indictment, the enterprise often threatened to cancel the immigration status of foreign nationals who requested permission to seek alternative housing.

Allegedly, these fees and expenses, combined with the lack of payment for hours worked, underpayment for hours worked and lack of work assignments, often resulted in the foreign national workers receiving a paycheck with negative earnings. The enterprise allegedly ensured that the workers did not make enough to repay their debt, to purchase a plane ticket home, or pay for their own living expenses while in the United States. It further controlled the foreign national workers in the Kansas City area by not allowing them to receive mail, the indictment says.

RICO is a federal law that provides for extended criminal penalties for acts performed as part of an ongoing criminal organization or enterprise. The charges contained in the indictment are simply accusations, and not evidence of guilt.

Finally, the case against the twelve defendants is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys William L. Meiners and Cynthia L. Cordes and Civil Rights Division Human Trafficking Prosecution Unit Trial Attorney Jim Felte. It was investigated by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, the FBI, the U.S. Labor Department's Office of Labor Racketeering and Fraud Investigations, IRS Criminal Investigation, the Kansas Department of Revenue  Criminal Investigations, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services and the Independence, Mo., Police Department in conjunction with the Human Trafficking Rescue Project. The twelve defendants, including eight Uzbekistan nationals are considered innocent until proven guilty.