8 years, no pay: Store owners charged with trafficking

THREE RIVERS, Mich. (WOOD) — It could have been any party store in small-town America.

A hastily scrawled “store closed” sign is the only evidence of the nightmare that allegedly unfolded inside the walls of the southwest Michigan liquor store.

The owners of the Broadway Market in Three Rivers are staring at different walls now; all three — father, mother and son — are charged with trafficking the wife of the owner’s son for labor.

Ikbal Singh Machhal, Shila Devi and Kartar Chand are accused of physically and emotionally abusing Machhal’s wife and forcing her to work in their store seven days a week, eight to nine hour shifts a day for eight years.

Investigators say the victim worked without pay.

Chand, 67, is out of the country, but his wife Devi, 66, and son Machhal, 40, were arrested Sunday night by Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and Three Rivers Police.

Mother and son remain in the St. Joseph County jail on one million dollar bonds.

“(Machhal’s wife) reported that she was the victim of almost daily physical abuse at the hands of .. Machhal,” wrote HSI special agent Kurt Fiegel in a probable cause affidavit filed in district court in Centreville. “She recounted instances wherein (he) ‘beat her up’ so badly that she had to be taken to the hospital. She was also repeatedly threatened with death by Machhal. He even went so far as to the threaten the lives of their children if she ever reported the abuse to authorities.”

In a federal civil suit filed — and won — by the victim, she explained that her marriage to Machhal was arranged in India, where custom dictated that she could not refuse.

“On one particular occasion,” wrote Fiegel in the affidavit, “while trying to refrain from going to work so she could be home with her newborn, she was forced outside into the snow in her bare feet and left there until she agreed to comply.”

In a Tuesday afternoon news conference, Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel said the family brought the victim to the U.S. from India “under the auspices of marriage and later forced (her) into labor in their family-owned liquor mart.”

Nessel said the trafficking began in 2014 when the family forced Machhal’s wife to move from Pennsylvania to Michigan after her husband and in-laws acquired the Broadway Market.

Nessel announced the charges at the YWCA of Kalamazoo, which advocated for the victim in the case and provides comprehensive services for survivors of trafficking.

Also on hand were Three Rivers Police and agents with Homeland Security Investigations.

“This case highlights the fact that forced labor is an issue that can affect any community and we must all remain vigilant,” said HSI Detroit acting Special Agent in Charge Shawn Gibson.

Grand Rapids-based special agent Kurt Fiegel worked on the case for more than three years.

“She was forced to work against her will under threat of severe physical, mental and emotional abuse,” wrote Fiegel in the court affidavit. “On several occasions this involved the brandishing of a firearm.”

For eight years, Fiegel said, the victim endured.

“This situation continued,” wrote Fiegel, “until (the victim) was removed from the home by state and local law enforcement in October 2020 when … Three Rivers Police Officer Matt Kilbourn, observed (the victim) in the hospital after being a victim of domestic violence by Ikbal Machhal.”

Machhal was convicted of aggravated domestic violence in that case.

Nessel noted that it was Kilbourne of Three Rivers Police who initially uncovered the scheme and his “vigilance and dedication” that eventually enabled the victim to leave her abusers.

Fiegel emphasized that HSI and its non-governmental partners, including the YWCA of Kalamazoo, have been working for years to raise awareness of trafficking.

“We’re dedicated to this mission,” said Fiegel. “We’ve come such a long way. But to be honest, we’re really just at the beginning of this, and there’s going to be a lot more coming down the pike.”

If convicted on the human trafficking charges, Machhal and Devi could face up to ten years in prison.

If you think you’ve identified someone who needs help, you can contact the National Human Trafficking Resource Center at 888.373.7888 or text 233733.

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