Restaurant Owner Accused of Actual Human Slavery [Update]
In DepthWe’ve heard about a lot of terrible restaurant owners on this website, but they pale in comparison to the restaurant owner in Valencia, California who was arrested on suspicion of human trafficking, assault with a deadly weapon, and holding a person in involuntary servitude.
Via the LA Times, Pardeep Kumar (pictured above, and doesn’t he just look like a charmer) was arrested last Tuesday for allegedly holding against his will an unidentified man who came to work as a chef in Kumar’s Tandoori Grill from India three years ago. According to police, Kumar confiscated the man’s passport when he arrived here, then beat him with a 2-foot-long piece of steel and a 3-foot-long metal mop handle, because sure, this story wasn’t awful enough as it was. The unnamed chef also had to work 12-14 hour days seven days a week, was barred from contact with the outside world while forced to live in Kumar’s home, and was (understandably) terrified for his life if he tried to escape. He apparently also has long-term injuries from broken bones that never healed properly.