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Jul 14, 2007 12:30 pm US/Eastern
Judge Halts Bail For Suspected Slave Owners
CENTRAL ISLIP, N.Y. (CBS) ―
A federal judge has put the brakes -- again -- on bail for a wealthy couple accused of forcing two Indonesian housekeepers to serve as their slaves.
U.S. District Court Judge Thomas Platt -- who initially denied bail for the couple but was overruled by an appeals court -- said Friday he wasn't satisfied with plans for security guards to monitor the suspects' Muttontown mansion and other conditions intended to assure that the two don't flee.
"What has been done so far is not satisfactory," Platt said.
Varsha Mahender Sabhnani, 35, and her husband, Mahender Murlidhar Sabhnani, 51, have been held without bail since they were arrested in May on federal charges of forced labor and harboring undocumented immigrants.
Prosecutors have said the couple held the housekeepers from 2002 to 2007 as virtual slaves, denying them freedom of movement, subjecting them to serious physical abuse and paying them no wages except for $100 a month sent to relatives abroad. Through lawyers, the Sabhnanis have denied the charges.
Early on, Platt indicated he might release the couple on $3.5 million bail if attorneys could agree on conditions of house arrest. But he denied bail after concluding the Sabhnanis posed a flight risk.
Varsha Sabhnani is originally from Indonesia, and her husband is from India; both are U.S. citizens. Prosecutors have argued that the Sabhnanis could have a strong motive to flee, noting that the charges carry prison terms of up to 40 years upon conviction.
Defense lawyers have contended that high bail and electronic monitoring could guarantee the Sabhnanis' appearance in court.
The 2nd Circuit Court of Appeals in Manhattan said Monday that appropriate bail release orders should be executed. The appeals court returned the case to Platt to formally set bail and order the release.
Platt said Friday he was not yet ready to do that. He took issue with a proposal from the Sabhnanis that would let a security firm -- rather than the judge -- determine how many guards would keep tabs on the couple and whether the monitors would be armed.
The judge also said proposals on monitoring the Sabhnanis' computer and screening visitors to their home weren't clear, and he called for an accountant to review the couple's finances. The Sabhnanis run a perfume business.
Platt asked federal prosecutors and the Sabhnanis' lawyers to complete the bail plans, and one of the couple's attorneys pledged to do so.
"We're going to work with the prosecutors to insure that the Sabhnanis get out as soon as possible," the lawyer, Jeffrey Hoffman, said after the court hearing.
(© 2007 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)
