A Qatar military official pleaded guilty to visa fraud in connection to falsifying documents to secure the visas for his two domestic servants. His wife pleaded guilty to two counts of misprision of a felony for obtaining the labor and services of these two women by force.
Hassan Salem H.M. Al Homoud (46) and his wife, Zainab Al Hosani (39), a citizen of the United Arab Emirates, and their two children, are living in San Antonio, Texas, while Al Homoud is attending military training at Camp Bullis.
In 2014, the defendants brought a housemaid and a “servant” to the United States with them. These women were put to work for the family.
The housemaid is a citizen of Indonesia and the servant is a citizen of Bangladesh. Both were in the U.S. because Al Homoud was a sponsor for their visas. Al Homoud falsified documents in order to secure the visas for these women.
As reported by Breitbart Texas previously, the defendants were alleged to have restricted the two workers’ ability to move or travel by withholding their wages, cell phones, passports, and visas. The indictments alleged that Al Homoud kept the workers in primitive conditions and provided limited amounts of food.
A San Antonio Police Department officer discovered the workers in early April. One of them was found on Camp Bullis Road, in what the U.S. Attorney’s Office called “apparent distress.” The officer went to the workers’ apartment and found it was furnished only with a pallet on the floor.
Al-Homoud and Al-Hosani were facing up to ten years in federal prison but have plea bargained for probation. Hassan will be placed on probation for five years, and his wife will be on probation for three years.
Both are out on bond until their sentencing hearing on February 9, 2016. The couple will appear before federal district Judge Orlando Garcia in San Antonio.
According to court documents obtained by Breitbart Texas, both of them will be immediately removed from the United States following their sentencing.
Lana Shadwick is a contributing writer and legal analyst for Breitbart Texas. She has served as an associate judge and prosecutor. Follow her on Twitter @LanaShadwick2
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