SANTA ANA, Calif., (Reuters) – A Saudi princess charged with bringing a Kenyan woman to the United States as a domestic servant and holding her against her will could face more charges, a California prosecutor who likened the case to “slavery” said yesterday.
Meshael Alayban, 42, was arrested on human trafficking charges at her apartment in suburban Irvine early on Wednesday after authorities say the alleged victim escaped from the residence and flagged down a bus driver.
Alayban is charged with bringing the Kenyan woman to the United States in May, confiscating her passport and paying her $220 a month to work 16 hours a day, seven days per week, while essentially holding her captive in the apartment complex.
The princess, described as a wife of Saudi Prince Abdulrahman bin Nasser bin Abdulaziz al Saud, was released from Orange County Jail on Thursday afternoon after posting $5 million bail.
But Orange County District Attorney Tony Rackauckas said it was possible she would face additional state or federal charges.
When police went to Alayban’s apartment in Irvine, about 50 miles (80 km) southeast of Los Angeles, they found four Filipino women believed to be working there whose status was unclear.
“It’s been 150 years since the Emancipation Proclamation so slavery has been illegal in the United States and certainly in California all this time. It’s disappointing to see it in use here,” Rackauckas said.
