Indentured Servant Life

Italian worker charged with forced labor in Calif.

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — An Italian government worker posted at the San Francisco consulate and his wife were arrested and charged with turning a Brazilian woman into an indentured servant after luring the woman to the United States with promises of a better life.

The couple, who spent the weekend in jail and had their young children placed in the custody of Protective Services, allege they are the victims of a "scheming young woman" bent on gaining U.S. citizenship by any means. They "vehemently" deny the allegations and continue to have the support of the Italian government.

Consular General Fabrizio Marcelli is one of five people who signed for the couple's bail of $250,000 each. Marcelli also appeared at the couple's bail hearing Tuesday to assure the court that Giuseppe Penzato would remain employed at the consulate as an administrative clerk through at least Dec. 31, 2013.

Guiseppe Penzato and his wife, Kesia Penzato, were charged with one count each of forced labor, which carries a maximum 20-year prison sentence.

Federal prosecutors didn't identify the woman. She also filed a lawsuit last year with similar allegations using the alias Jane Doe.

The couple are scheduled to enter their pleas next month, but in court filings and in an interview Wednesday, one of the couple's lawyers said they deny the charges and will plead not guilty at their arraignment scheduled for July 28.

A federal investigator alleges the saga began when Kesia Penzato reconnected with her childhood friend from Brazil through a social networking website in December 2008. Kesia Penzato told her friend that her life had improved since moving the United States. She was living in San Francisco's North Beach neighborhood, having married an Italian 20 years her senior who worked at his country's consulate in San Francisco.

Her friend's fortunes weren't so good. She was separated from her husband and on the brink of losing her health care job in Brazil.

So Kesia Penzato invited her childhood friend to come live with the family in San Francisco and work for her as a housekeeper and nanny for $1,500 a month and free lodging.

The plan was for the friend to pursue a nursing education and create a better life for her and her son in the United States. The worker alleges that she received a domestic servant visa with Giuseppe Penzato "pulling strings" to ensure her application was approved. She started in August 2009.

Three months later, the worker alleges to have fled the home with her clothes in a garbage bag and tales of indentured servitude complete with physical and sexual abuse. The worker claims in her 2010 lawsuit, and prosecutors allege in their criminal complaint filed Monday, that the Penzatos withheld pay and food from her during her three months in their home. The woman alleges that Kesia Penzato physically assaulted her twice.

life of an indentured servant - CCSD Blogs

“Hello, my name is Cole”. I am indentured servant. When I heard about the new world, I wanted to go there. One man was kind enough to pay for my trip.  In return, I gave him my word to go work for him long enough to pay off my debt. When I am done, I get to go off and live my new life in the new world. It shouldn’t be that hard because I have a lot of rights.  When I am free, I will go and have a family.  I will also be a farmer. In these two paragraphs, I will answer these two questions: What are my future plans?  What is my work like?

What are my future plans?  As I said, I am going to be a farmer. I will get the crops going and all. Soon enough, I will get married.  I will have a family. If I’m lucky, I can have kids and they can help me on the farm too. I’ll have a very happy life and family.  I’ll get all the food I need from my crops. I’ll grow the crops because I am a farmer. It’ll all work out.

What is my work like?

I mostly do farming in  my work. I plant a viaritey of vegetables. I even plant fruits, flowers and trees. That is just most of my work. At other times I get to take care of the farm animals, which is fun. The animals on the farm inclued pigs, cows, chickens, horses and sheep. My work requires getting up early and working long hours. I am hoping for the best that it all works out.

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