Hispanic couple enslaved a 12-year-old girl for forced labor and sex after she was smuggled into the United States from Mexico

Inez Martinez Garcia, 43, and her husband Marcial Garcia Hernandez, 45, enslaved a 12-year-old girl for forced labor and sex for over two years. The Latinos were arrested on suspicion of human trafficking. Each of the defendants faces up to 390 years to life in prison if convicted of all charges. Deputies say the investigation revealed that the girl was smuggled into the United States at the age of 12 with promises of a better life and receiving an education. When the victim arrived at the Garcia household, she was forced to care for the couple’s three young children, cook and clean the house under constant threat of physical abuse. Over the course of a 20-month period, the young girl was also forced to have sex with Marcial Garcia Hernandez. When she refused to participate in the sex acts or didn’t complete her household labor in a timely manner she was beaten. The victim was also forced to lie about her age when the couple found work for the girl at a local restaurant. She had to turn over all of her wages to Inez Martinez Garcia. Over time, the couple also forced the girl into having sex with other older men for monetary gain. The Hispanic couple are immigrants from Mexico and are legal permanent residents of the United States. In court, the Latino couple’s defense attorneys said that the pair would require interpreters able to speak Zapotec, an indigenous language spoken in Oaxaca, in southern Mexico.