Job Torres Hernandez, Forced Labor, Human Trafficking, California 2019

Hayward Man Sentenced to 8.5 Years in Prison for Forced Labor and Human Trafficking

OAKLAND - On March 18, 2019, a jury convicted Job Torres Hernandez, 38, of Hayward, California, of forced labor and human trafficking charges. Torres was sentenced to 103 months in prison and ordered to pay $919,738.64 in restitution for unpaid wages.

Torres was convicted of one count of harboring illegal aliens for commercial advantage or private financial gain, in violation of 8 U.S.C. §§ 1324(a)(1)(A)(iii) and (B)(i), and one count of forced labor, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 1589(a). The evidence at trial demonstrated that Torres owned construction companies in Northern California and recruited workers from Mexico to work for his companies, refusing to pay them wages they earned. Torres also kept workers in squalid conditions and shielded them from detection while making them work long hours.

Many victims testified at trial about how Torres treated them, including paying them less than promised and threatening them or their family members if they reported him. The evidence also showed that Torres housed dozens of workers on makeshift beds in a commercial warehouse in Hayward and other properties, with limited access to toilets and showers.

Torres was remanded into custody on the day the jury rendered its verdict and remains in custody pending assignment to a Bureau of Prisons facility. He was also sentenced to a three-year term of supervised release to begin at the conclusion of his prison term.

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Ravi T. Narayan and Jonathan U. Lee are prosecuting the case with the assistance of ICE’s Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Special Agent in Charge Ryan L. Spradlin.

Torres was convicted and sentenced in the United States District Court for the Northern District of California, before the Honorable Jeffrey S. White, U.S. District Judge. The case is a reminder of the serious consequences of human trafficking and forced labor, and the importance of holding perpetrators accountable for their crimes.

Torres’ sentence includes 103 months in prison and three years of supervised release, as well as restitution of $919,738.64 for unpaid wages.

Contact: U.S. Attorney’s Office, Northern District of California, (415) 436-7200

Source: https://www.justice.gov/usao-ndca/pr/hayward-man-sentenced-more-8-years-prison-forced-labor-and-illegal-harboring-charges