Men accused of trafficking homeless women in West Michigan
KENT COUNTY, Mich. (FOX 2) - Two men are accused of enticing homeless women to work for them and then forcing the victims to give them the money, authorities in West Michigan said.
The Kent County Sheriff's Office said the suspects, who are both 27, found the 34- and 43-year-old victims in Kalamazoo and lured them into working for them for money. These men then forced the victims to open bank accounts at several banks and made the victims give the suspects the account information.
Authorities learned about this when one of the women went into a Byron Township Bank of America on Thursday afternoon and told the tellers that two men were forcing her to open an account.
When deputies arrived, they found the two men and another female in a vehicle. After questioning them, the men were arrested, and charges of unlawful imprisonment, human trafficking, and resisting and obstructing police were authorized, authorities said. The men are expected to be arraigned Friday.
The sheriff's office said it appears there were other incidents involving the suspects and victims as well.
Authorities are still investigating what the suspects were using the bank accounts for.