Mom and daughter force child, adults into indentured servitude at nursing home, feds say

A mother and daughter convinced three Haitian migrants, including a child, to travel to the U.S. to work at their adult foster care home in Oregon and forced them into indentured servitude, federal prosecutors said.

After the child and two adults arrived in Portland in September 2023, Marie Gertrude Jean Valmont and her daughter, Yolandita Marie Andre, confiscated the trio’s immigration documents and made them work “long, difficult hours for little or no pay” at Velida’s Care Home in Tigard, about a 10-mile drive southwest from Portland, according to prosecutors.

The pair prohibited the migrants from leaving and used threats to keep them working at the facility, prosecutors said.

Valmont is accused of threatening to send the migrants back to Haiti, threatening to have them killed and threatening to call the police to wrongly accuse them of stealing. She is also accused of throwing items at them.

A federal public defender representing Valmont didn’t immediately respond to McClatchy News’ requests for comment Sept. 30.

Authorities learned of the indentured servitude after the child told a pediatrician she was being forced to work at Velida’s Care Home, prosecutors said.

The FBI arrested Valmont, 66, and Andre, 30, on Sept. 26 at their business, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Oregon.

Now, both women, of Tigard, are charged in a seven-count indictment with conspiring with one another to commit forced labor, committing forced labor and benefiting from forced labor, the U.S. Attorney’s Office said in a Sept. 27 news release.

Valmont and Andre have pleaded not guilty, prosecutors said.

Attorney Ernest Warren Jr., who represents Andre, told McClatchy News on Sept. 30 that the case involves a third Haitian adult, a man who he said is an alleged witness.

In speaking about the two Haitian adults and the witness, Warren said in an emailed statement that “it’s impossible for a woman like Yolandita Andre to manhandle three strong grown Haitian men, and she has a heart of compassion.”

“Once all the facts come out about the alleged victims and their motives for claiming these allegations, then I hope that justice is meted out against them,” Warren added.

Valmont and Andre co-founded Velida’s Care Home in 2022 and own it together, according to the business’ website. There, residents are provided with 24-hour care.

The child who helped reveal Valmont and Andre’s “trafficking scheme” was removed from the facility and taken to a foster home, according to prosecutors.

Valmont and Andre were released from custody while the case is pending, according to officials.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office encourages anyone with information about suspected human trafficking to contact the National Human Trafficking Resource Center at (888) 373-7888 or by sending a text to 233733. Tips can also be submitted online.More on human trafficking

Human trafficking is a “crime of exploitation,” according to the U.S. Department of Justice. Traffickers profit off their victims by forcing them to engage in sex acts or do labor.

“With an estimated 27.6 million victims worldwide at any given time, human traffickers prey on people of all ages, backgrounds, and nationalities, exploiting them for their own profit,” officials said.

Industries where trafficking victims are forced to work include hospitality, restaurants, agriculture, construction, landscaping, factories, home care, salons, massage parlors, retail, janitorial and many more, officials said.

In the U.S., children in welfare or juvenile justice systems, such as foster care, are the most vulnerable to human trafficking, officials said.

Children and teens experiencing homelessness, people seeking asylum, people who struggle with substance abuse, migrant laborers, people who identify as part of the LGBTQ community and victims of domestic violence are also more vulnerable to becoming victims of human trafficking

“Traffickers can be strangers, acquaintances, or even family members, and they prey on the vulnerable and on those seeking opportunities to build for themselves a brighter future,” officials said.

If you or someone you know is in immediate danger, please call 911.