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Tacoma couple pleads guilty to enslaving niece

11:25 PM PDT on Thursday, September 7, 2006

Associated Press

TACOMA, Wash. -- A Pierce County couple pleaded guilty today in Tacoma to federal charges that they forced their immigrant niece to work long hours without pay in their home and at the family espresso stand.

47-year-old Abdenasser "Sammy" Ennassime pleaded guilty to forced labor, and his wife, Tonya, pleaded guilty to harboring an illegal alien.

KING

The U-S attorney's office said it will recommend a sentence of six months' home confinement, three years of probation and more than 65-thousand dollars in back wages to their niece.

The girl, Lamia Ennassime, came from Morocco to stay with her aunt and uncle at age 12 in September of 2001. She was to help care for their son and help with housework in exchange for lodging and a chance for a good education. She also worked weekends and summers without pay at the espresso stand.

Prosecutors said that after her six-month visa expired, her uncle threatened that if she didn't work longer and harder, he would report her to immigration authorities.

The girl escaped in July of last year. The U-S attorney's office declined to say whether she is still in this country or has returned to Morocco.