A Nicholls woman, Maria Leticia Patricio, was recently sentenced to prison for her role in a widespread human trafficking operation that exploited migrant workers across South Georgia, including Coffee, Atkinson, Bacon, and other counties. Officials with the Justice Department stated Patricio was part of a conspiracy involving farm labor contractors who fraudulently used the H-2A work visa program to smuggle foreign nationals from Mexico, Guatemala, and Honduras into the United States under the pretext of serving as agricultural workers, then subjecting them to forced labor, brutal working conditions, and inhumane living situations. The operation, dubbed "Operation Blooming Onion," resulted in multiple deaths, kidnappings, and severe abuse. Patricio was also ordered to pay restitution to the victims, with additional civil lawsuits filed against her and others involved in the exploitation. Operation Blooming Onion is one of the largest U.S. human trafficking cases ever prosecuted by the U.S. Dept. of Justice. Link in comments for more.
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