An Oregon mom and daughter have been indicted by the Department of Justice on human trafficking and forced labor charges. The pair allegedly put three Haitians, including a minor, in "indentured servitude" at an adult care home they owned and operated in Tigard, a city located southwest of Portland, according to a press release from the Justice Department.

Marie Gertrude Jean Valmont, 66, and Yolandita Marie Andre, 30, are accused of using violence and threats to force their victims to work long hours for little or no pay. The seven-count indictment charges both of them with conspiring with one another to commit forced labor, committing forced labor, and benefitting from forced labor.

Marie Gertrude Jean Valmont, left, and Yolandita Marie Andre, right, are accused by the DOJ of trafficking three Haitians for forced labor at their adult care home in Tigard, Oregon

Court documents state that Valmont and Andre, the owners and operators of Velida's Care Home in Tigard, began their human trafficking scheme in Sept. 2023, when they convinced two adults and a child from Haiti to travel to the United States to work at their care home.

After arriving in the Portland area, the victims were immediately taken to Velida's where they were allegedly forced to work long, arduous 17-hour days for little or no pay. Valmont and Andre are alleged to have taken the victims' immigration paperwork and forbade them from leaving Velida's under any circumstances. Additionally, Valmont is alleged to have thrown items at the victims, threatened to send them back to Haiti and have them killed, and threatened to call police to make false theft allegations against them, according to the indictment.

Velida's Care Home located in Tigard, Ore. Credit: Velida's wesbite

Images of the rooms inside Velida's Care Home. Credit: Velida's website

Authorities with the Oregon Department of Justice were alerted to the situation at Velida's in the summer of 2023 after the minor victim disclosed that she was victimized in the alleged scheme to a pediatrician. The minor was removed from the home shortly after the visit and was placed in foster care.

The FBI arrested Valmont and Andre outside their care home on Thursday, Sept. 26, 2024. They were taken into custody without incident, authorities said. The defendants were arraigned in federal court before a US Magistrate Judge on Friday, Sept. 27. Valmont and Andre pleaded not guilty to the charges and were released from custody pending further court proceedings.

The defendants face up to more than 40 years in prison if convicted on charges. Committing and benefiting from forced labor are charges both punishable by up to 20 years in federal prison.

Valmont and Andre have maintained their innocence, claiming to a KATU reporter that they, themselves, are both immigrants and were helping the Haitians out. Additionally, Marie Gertrude Jean Valmont, the mother who was indicted, sued a Portland nonprofit for $250,000 for alleged racial discrimination after she was fired, court records show.

This case was investigated by the FBI with assistance from the Tigard Police Department. It is being prosecuted by Eliza Carmen-Rodriguez, assistant US attorney for the District of Oregon.