Indictment: 400 Thai workers exploited in U.S.

HONOLULU — A newly unsealed federal indictment accuses six people of exploiting the labor of about 400 workers from Thailand, forcing them to work on farms in Hawaii and Washington state.

The indictment unsealed Thursday charges six people in the human trafficking conspiracy involving Los Angeles-based recruiting company Global Horizons Manpower Inc. They're charged with five counts that come with maximum sentences reaching up to 70 years in prison.

The indictment alleges the defendants lured the workers with false promises of lucrative jobs and kept them working with threats of economic harm.

It claims the defendants confiscated the Thai workers' passports, failed to honor their employment contracts and threatened to deport them.