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Documented on the original SlaveryMap (2008–2016). We don’t have a verifiable source on file yet. Know one?
What happened
Hans Gouw and Harjanto Komala recruited young women, ages 16 to 23, to come to the U.S. to work as exotic dancers and prostitutes. Once the victims arrived in the U.S. they were told they had to work for Gouw for at least one year. Gouw then confiscated their passports, and kept the women monitored at all times (when they were at work or at the common house where they were kept when not working). Komala would identify women in Indonesia, and send Gouw their picture, as well as information about height, age, and weight. Komala, Gouw, and other associates then recruited the women to work in the U.S.
Response and intervention
As a result of the investigation, 27 people have been charged with a variety of crimes. Specifically, Gouw was convicted of conspiracy to commit immigration fraud, conspiracy to commit identification document fraud, conspiracy to commit sex trafficking, and money laundering. Komala was convicted of conspiracy to commit sex trafficking. The investigation of Gouw and Komala are part of a two year long investigation of illegal Indonesian immigration brokers and consultants in Northern Virginia and Maryland.