An Indonesian woman testified Monday she was forced to eat her vomit and was punished with hot water by a millionaire Long Island couple who hired her as a housekeeper, according to The Associated Press.
Prosecutors argue the 51-year-old woman, identified as Samirah, and another Indonesian woman, Enung, were brought to the United States as housekeepers by Mahender Murlidhar Sabhnani, 51, and his wife, Varsha Mahender Sabhnani, 45, but were instead enslaved inside the couple's mansion, the AP reported.
Samirah told the court Monday she was forced to eat chili powder with salt water and then told to eat her vomit after she became sick, according to the AP. She alleges she was repeatedly poked with a knife and scalded with hot water for sleeping late and stealing food from the trash.
Samirah was found in a doughnut shop in May after she supposedly escaped, the AP reported.
The couple, who owns an international perfume business, has pleaded not guilty to a 12-count federal indictment including conspiracy and involuntary servitude, the AP reported.
-PATRICIO CHILE
