In a sting operation set up by the FBI, four men were sentenced to long prison terms and hefty fines after being exposed as prepared and eager to subject woman to a lifetime of torture, abuse, and hard work.
The sting began when the FBI gained access to an internet site that offered users the chance to buy female slaves in Malaysia. The site was a scam, and users of the site were defrauded, but the FBI learned that there were a lot of people in the US and around the world that were interested in purchasing slaves.
Agents from the FBI began targeting certain users of the site who seemed committed to the idea of purchasing a slave, emailing them as the “slaver.” Special Agent Kurt Remus, of the FBI’s Phoenix field office, said, “We’d tell them, ‘This is not fantasy, these are humans. If you have any problems with that, get out now.’” He says that scared off many of the would-be slave buyers. But four men continued communication with the “slaver,” eventually traveling with money in hand to what they believed was a slave auction at a residence in Paradise Valley. They brought pictures of their slave dungeons, assuring the “slaver” that there was no way the women would be able to escape. All four had taken action to secure their homes: one way locks, restraining devices, chains, covered windows, soundproof boxes, and cages. The proof the men provided of the extensive preparations they took to contain their would-be slaves was used as evidence by the prosecution.
One of the Arizona men arrested was from Mesa, the other from Tucson. The other two men arrested were from California and Montana. They received prison sentences that ranged from five to nine years, followed with supervised probation.
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