Owners of Mexican restaurants charged with labor trafficking in Georgia
The husband and wife owners of Sabor a Mexico charged with labor trafficking. The couple forced immigrants to work for them in Atlanta, Georgia.
- Husband and wife owners of Sabor a México are charged with labor trafficking.
- The couple forced immigrants to work for them.
- The restaurants are outside Atlanta, Georgia.
A couple in the United States is facing federal labor trafficking, forced labor and alien smuggling charges in Atlanta, Georgia. They are accused of mistreating employees at two Sabor a México locations.
Federal documents indicate at least 10 people were victims of human trafficking. The defendants were identified as Efraín González Salgado, 40, and Estela Judith González, 34.
Sabor a México owners in serious trouble
The arrest warrant is dated May 9, 2023. According to the federal indictment, at least six people who are undocumented immigrants and four other employees of the two restaurants were treated like slaves by the owners.
Apparently, this had been going on for two years. The two Sabor a México locations catered mostly to Mexicans who wanted authentic food from their home country.
Employees were treated like slaves
According to Univision, court documents indicate that Efrain and Estela, both Peachtree City residents, conspired to commit labor trafficking. The couple used force, threats of force and coercion.
They took advantage of their victims’ lack of documentation to force them to work in the restaurants. In addition, they point out that the couple participated in the smuggling of immigrants for commercial gain.
This had been going on for two years
Efraín faces five charges and Estela faces one for crimes against undocumented workers. The government lists ten victims of the couple, six of whom were in the country illegally. The immigration status of the other four is unknown.
The Department of Justice (DOJ) has said that a criminal network was taking advantage of people who came into the US illegally. These crimes would have occurred from March 2021 to October 2022.
The government has evidence
“The government has indicated that the discovery in the present case will be voluminous. To date, the defense has only received a small part of the advance discovery, and the government has indicated that it will file for a protective order before the bulk of the discovery is presented to the defense,» read the federal documents obtained by Univision.
“On May 9, 2023, Ms. González and Mr. González-Salgado were indicted on sixteen counts alleging forced labor, alien smuggling, and conspiracy to perform forced labor. Count 16 applies to both defendants and carries a potential sentence of life in prison,” the federal documents read.