Pa. trial lifts curtain on forced labor in US

PHILADELPHIA (AP) — A Pennsylvania jury could soon weigh charges against Ukrainian brothers charged with luring desperate villagers to the U.S. and enslaving them in jobs cleaning stores and offices.

Closing arguments are expected today in a case that opens a window into the hidden world of human trafficking and forced labor.

Federal prosecutors in Philadelphia say the victims were promised $500 a month, but instead were given little food or money for their 16-hour days.

Authorities say Omelyan and Stepan Botsvynyuk and their brothers operated a criminal racketeering enterprise that beat, raped or threatened people who came to the United States for a better life.

Defense lawyers say the witnesses are cooperating with the government only to get a visa for trafficking victims that entitles them to stay in the country.