An investigation into an alleged human trafficking scheme forcing illegal immigrants to work for shell companies to pay off debt is continuing in a rural county outside of Dallas.
The Princeton Police Department released details on July 8 about the investigation that led to the March arrest of four people with ties to India.
Based on a tip, police obtained a search warrant for a sparsely furnished residential home in Collin County owned by Santhosh Katkoori, and they discovered 15 women inside.
Police charged Mr. Katkoori, 31, of Melissa, Texas; Dwaraka Gunda, 31, of Melissa; Chandan Dasireddy, 24, of Melissa; and Anil Male, 37, of Prosper, Texas, with trafficking of persons, a second-degree felony. According to Collin County Jail, Mr. Katkoori, Ms. Gunda, and Mr. Dasireddy were released from custody after posting bail. No information was available regarding Mr. Male.
Police Lt. Jesus Rodriguez told The Epoch Times that sleeping bags, air mattresses, and suitcases were found in the home.
While the search warrant was executed, police said multiple laptops, cellphones, printers, and “fraudulent documents” were seized.
According to a police statement, the women “were forced to work for Katkoori and multiple programming shell companies owned by him and his wife, Dwaraka Gunda.”
Police said multiple locations in Princeton, Melissa, and McKinney—all small neighboring towns—were involved in the “forced laboring of the victims,” including adult males.
Additional laptops, cellphones, and documents were seized from the other locations.
Lt. Rodiguez said authorities believe that 100 people were involved in the alleged scheme, with more than 60 victims, most in the country illegally.
“It’s a big organization that we’re dealing with for sure. It’s looking like there are some other key players involved,” he said.
Police stated that “further charges of multiple parties are still pending” as the investigation continues.
Jeremy Rosenthal, an attorney representing Mr. Katkoori, told ABC affiliate WFAA in Dallas that police had not provided him or the public with any proof of wrongdoing.
“Mr. Katkoori was helping them find a job and in exchange for which he was keeping 20 [percent] of their earnings. That may be an unconventional business practice. I just don’t see how it’s human trafficking,” Mr. Rosenthal told the outlet.
He said police didn’t put “a whole lot of time” into the investigation before arrests were made and that his client wanted his day in court.
The lawyer did not respond by publication time to The Epoch Times’ request for comment.
A receptionist at the law office of Douglas Wilder, attorney for Ms. Gunda, said the firm didn’t wish to comment. Details about the lawyers for Mr. Dasireddy and Mr. Male were unavailable.
Texas has been at the epicenter of the border crisis, with some 10 million illegal immigrants crossing into the United States since 2021.
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton formed the Human Trafficking and Transnational/Organized Crime Section to combat human trafficking across the state.
