Lakireddy Bali Reddy

Lakireddy Bali Reddy
Born May 1937 (age 78–79)
Velvadum, Krishna District, Andhra Pradesh, India
Residence Berkeley, California U.S.
Nationality United States
Occupation Transnational crime figure, landlord, investor
Criminal penalty 97 months in jail, US$2 million in restitution
Criminal status Paroled
Conviction(s) Immigration fraud, transportation of minors for illegal sexual activity

Lakireddy Bali Reddy (Telugu: లకిరెడ్డి బాలి రెడ్డి; born May 1937) is a landlord, convicted felon, and chairman of the Lakireddy Balireddy College of Engineering.[1][2] Reddy exploited the Indian caste system to traffic young Indian women and girls to Berkeley, California. From 1986–1999, he and his family members and associates forced them into servitude and sexual slavery.

Reddy came to the United States in 1960 to study engineering at the University of California, Berkeley. By 1975, Reddy had opened a successful Indian cuisine restaurant in downtown Berkeley. He used its profits to purchase over 1,000 run-down apartment buildings, making him, by 2000, the largest and wealthiest landlord in the city (other than the University of California), with a worth estimated at US$69 million.

In 2000, Reddy was indicted by the United States Attorney for the Northern District of California who charged him with sex trafficking, visa fraud, and tax code violations[1] following a lengthy investigation by the Immigration and Naturalization Service, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Internal Revenue Service, the Department of Labor, and the Berkeley Police Department.

On June 21, 2001, the United States Attorney for the Northern District of California announced that Reddy plead guilty to one count of conspiring to commit immigration fraud, two counts of transportation of minors for illegal sexual activity, and one count of subscribing to a false tax return for which he was fined US$2 million and sentenced to serve a prison term of 97 months (8 years 1 month) in the custody of the Federal Bureau of Prisons.[1]

Because of Reddy having turned Berkeley into what U.S. Federal Prosecutors called Velvadam-by-the-Bay, his case ultimately served as the building block for California’s anti-trafficking movement.[3]

Early life and education

Reddy was born in 1937 in the village of Velvadam, in the Krishna district of Andhra Pradesh, India[1][4] and at age 17 was married for the first time to a 14-year-old girl.[5] Married three times, Reddy has two sons, Vijay and Prasad Lakireddy.

Reddy completed his Bachelors in Science and Bachelors in Technology degrees from Osmania University in Hyderabad and then attended the University of California, Berkeley on a scholarship in 1960, graduating with a master's degree in chemical engineering.[6]

Creation of personal Berkeley caste system

In 1975, Reddy opened the Pasand Madras Indian Cuisine restaurant in downtown Berkeley. He used its profits to become, by 2000, the second largest property owner in the city, second only to the University of California, by his acquiring over 1,000 rundown apartment buildings.[6] By 2000, he owned real estate assets valued at US$69 million[1] and had income of US$1 million per month from his 1,000 rental properties.[5][7]

Reddy also owned a construction company with his brother Hanimireddy Lakireddy (who was a Yale University trained cardiologist)[1] that was located near his restaurant in Berkeley. He opened a second Pasand Indian Cuisine Restaurant in Santa Clara, and owned nightclubs in Berkeley and San Francisco.[5]

Using the profits from his U.S. businesses, Reddy built two elementary schools, a high school, created sources of clean drinking water and paid for a new wing at the local hospital in the Indian village of Velvadam where he was born.

Because of Reddy’s many capital expenditures, Velvadam became known as a mini-U.S.A. Some villagers adored him for his power and spending.[5]

The majority of the villagers in Velvadam were Dalit (untouchables) of the Varna caste system. In 1986, Reddy used his status to convince them that he could better their lives by bringing them to America. Reddy brought up to 99 people, mostly women and girls, to the United States. In many cases, he used fraudulent visas, sham marriages and fake identities.[5]

Anita Chabria, a California-based journalist, wrote, "Reddy ruled over his victims like a feudal lord, imposing his law rather than U.S. law by keeping his targets isolated and afraid — of him, and of their tenuous position as illegal immigrants — and by importing the rules of the caste system, an apartheid that India has fought to eradicate but that still governs the daily lives of many Hindus".[1]

Initial investigation

On November 24, 1999, Marcia Poole, a long-time Berkeley resident, while driving on a side street in Berkeley, became suspicious when she saw 4 Indian men moving what she first thought was a rolled up rug out of a Reddy-owned apartment building and putting it into a Reddy Realty owned van. Poole noticed in the crowd of bystanders a distraught young Indian girl. Upon looking more closely at the rug being carried, she noticed a leg sticking out of it.[1]

When the men tried to drag that girl into the van too, who was "resisting with all her might", Poole stopped them and was able to get a passing drive to call the police. Police found the body of 13-year-old Sitha Vemireddy (later identified as one of Reddy's concubines) in the apartment building's stairwell and her sister, Lalitha, alive but disoriented in the van.

Police investigators, who did not know what had happened when they arrived on the scene, asked Reddy to interpret for them, which Lt. Cynthia Harris, chief of detectives and public information officer for the Berkeley Police Department later admitted was a mistake.

Reddy told the police that 18-year-old Laxmi Patati (the crying and pleading girl) was the roommate of Sitha and her sister Lalitha and had discovered them both unconscious when she returned to their shared apartment. Police accepted Reddy’s story and the coroner ruled the death of Sitha to be accidental carbon monoxide poisoning caused by a blocked heating vent and the investigation was closed.

Less than a month later, in December 1999, the Berkeley Police received an anonymous letter saying that Reddy had lied to them and causing a new investigation to be opened into Sitha’s death, but by that time her body had been cremated by orders given by Reddy.

The Berkeley Police then joined with the INS in a larger investigation of Reddy that was joined by the FBI and US Justice Department.[1]

Investigation and arrest

Following the November 24, 1999 demise of 13-year-old Sitha Vemireddy and the December 1999, anonymous letter they received about her death, the Berkeley Police Department opened a new investigation into Reddy teaming with the INS and re-interviewing her roommates Lalitha and Patati, and the man who Reddy said was their father, Venkateswara Vemireddy.

Using their own interpreters for this new investigation, the Berkeley Police and INS caused Reddy associates Venkateswara Vemireddy and his sister Padma, to confess that he was not Sitha’s father. Vemireddy told these authorities that Reddy had obtained fraudulent visas for him and these minor girls, and loaned him US$6,500.00. Vemireddy then falsely stated that both Sitha and Lalitha were his daughters.

Lalitha and Patati had been detained in an INS facility but were released with the help of the American Civil Liberties Union and private lawyers. They told investigators that Reddy had raped and beat them and forced them to work for almost no pay.

Patati also told authorities that her father had sold her to Reddy when she was 12, that Patati was not her real name, and that she had also worked as a servant on Reddy's estate in Velvadam and been abused by him there too.

Patati also said she was at the San Francisco airport when Padma Vemireddy arrived with Sitha and Lalitha posing as her daughters. Reddy and Patati (who had previously been smuggled into Berkeley) picked up the girls and took them to the Berkeley apartment where Patati lived. Patati told investigators that she had witnessed Reddy raping both Sitha and Lalitha. Reddy continued to rape them and force them to perform labor for little or no pay.

In January 2000, police arrested Reddy[8] two days before his planned departure to India with one of his trafficked victims.

The original nine-count U.S. federal indictment charged Reddy with conspiracy to commit immigration fraud, transportation of minors for illegal sexual activity and false statements on a tax return.[1]

Widespread outrage in California erupted immediately upon Reddy’s arrest, but when Western media outlets went to the village of Velvadam they found some villagers praising him with banners.[7]

Pleading and conviction

The original charges carried a potential sentence of up to 38 years in prison.[1]

Authorities faced complications during the investigation. Many of Reddy’s victims refused to testify against him, partly due to fear and uncertainty regarding their Dalit caste status. However, they reached a plea agreement, in which Reddy would be sentenced to 97 months in prison and ordered to 2 million in restitution. The agreement prohibits appeals. He was convicted of "one count of conspiracy to commit immigration fraud, two counts of transporting a minor in foreign commerce for illegal sexual activity, and one count of subscribing to a false tax return".[1]

In Reddy’s new plea agreement he admitted that between 1986 and January 2000, he illegally brought Indian nationals into the United States using fraudulent visas and admitted that he made arrangements to have Venkateswara Vemireddy enter the United States on a fraudulent visa and to bring his sister posing as his wife.

Reddy also admitted bringing two minor girls into the United States as their daughters, stating that he intended to have sexual intercourse with both victims, who were younger than 16 years old. Another victim girl was reported to be 13 years of age in 1991 when she was brought into the United States with false documents. Reddy said he intended to have sexual intercourse with her too.

Prosecutors later found that one of their interpreters, Uma Rao, had asked the victims to exaggerate the crimes. After discovering this, they disclosed this information to the defense. Bharat Kona, another interpreter, raised funds for the victims and wrote to the judge asking for a long sentence. Legal sources speculated that the actions of the interpreters might result in a new trial.[1]

Post prison life

Reddy was released from prison in 2008.[7] He moved into a mansion that had been custom-built for him while he was imprisoned.[5] He continues to manage his over 1,000 apartment buildings in Berkeley through his real estate company Raj Properties.[9]

Upon his release from prison, Reddy was registered as a California sex offender under that state's Megan's Law.[5] His crimes were among those used as the basis to enact this law.

In popular culture

Lakireddy Bali Reddy was the subject of the book Slaves of Berkeley: The Shocking Story of Human Trafficking in the United States by Tim Huddleston.[10] According to Huddleston:

Lakireddy Bali Reddy was a noted successful businessman; he owned restaurants and real estate all over Northern California and made over $1,000,000 a month from his income properties. He also had a dirty little secret to his success...he forced Indian girls into slavery. All was going well for Lakireddy until a carbon monoxide leak led to the death of one of his underaged slaves. Surprisingly, it wasn't a police investigation that led to his arrest, but a story in a school newspaper. This is the story of the human trafficking ring that shook a nation and opened the door for reform in the United States.
— Slaves of Berkeley: The Shocking Story of Human Trafficking in the United States

Reddy's crimes have also been cited in the books Hidden Slaves: Forced Labor in the United States,[11] Body Evidence: Intimate Violence against South Asian Women in America,[12] Shout Out: Women of Color Respond to Violence,[13] New Slavery: A Reference Handbook,[14] Not for Sale: The Return of the Global Slave Trade—and How We Can Fight It,[15] and Multicultural Jurisprudence: Comparative Perspectives on the Cultural Defense.[16]

His case reportedly inspired changes to California's human trafficking laws in 2005[7] and was part of Congressional testimony on the proposed Save America Comprehensive Immigration Act of 2007,[17] as well as the report of the California Alliance to Combat Trafficking and Slavery Task Force.[18]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 Chabria, Anita (November 25, 2001). "His Own Private Berkeley". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved October 17, 2013.
  2. ↑ "LAKIREDDY BALI REDDY COLLEGE OF ENGG.". www.lbrce.ac.in. Retrieved April 18, 2016.
  3. ↑ "How an infamous Berkeley human trafficking case fueled reform | San Francisco Public Press". sfpublicpress.org. Retrieved April 18, 2016.
  4. ↑ "Lakireddy Bali Reddy". Edupreneurs. Retrieved October 17, 2013.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Russell, Diana (2001). The Lakireddy Bali Reddy Case (Report). Women Against Sexual Slavery. Retrieved April 5, 2016.
  6. 1 2 "Chairman Profile". Lakireddy Bali Reddy College of Engineering. Retrieved October 17, 2013.
  7. 1 2 3 4 Sundaram, Viji (February 16, 2012). "How an infamous Berkeley human trafficking case fueled reform". San Francisco Public Press. Retrieved October 17, 2013.
  8. ↑ "Berkeley Landlord Arrested in Sex Scheme / Police say he brought girls from India". SFGate. Retrieved April 18, 2016.
  9. ↑ "Welcome to Raj Properties". www.rajproperties.com. Retrieved April 18, 2016.
  10. ↑ Huddleston, Tim (2013). Slaves of Berkeley: The Shocking Story of Human Trafficking in the United States. Absolute Crime Books. ISBN 1-4840-8990-1.
  11. ↑ Hidden Slaves: Forced Labor in the United States. Free the Slaves and Human Rights Center. 2004. ISBN 0-9760677-0-6.
  12. ↑ Jesudasan, Sujatha (2007). "Local and Global Undivided: Translational Exploitation and Violence Against South Asian Women". In Dasgupta, Shamita Das. Body Evidence: Intimate Violence against South Asian Women in America. New Brunswick, New Jersey: Rutgers University Press. pp. 243–257. ISBN 978-0-8135-3982-9.
  13. ↑ Shekar, Nalini; Sharangpani, Mukta (2007). Ochoa, María; Ige, Barbara K., eds. Shout Out: Women of Color Respond to Violence. Emeryville, California: Seal Press. pp. 101–109. ISBN 1-58005-229-0.
  14. ↑ Bales, Tim (2004). New Slavery: A Reference Handbook (2 ed.). ABC-CLIO. pp. 39–40. ISBN 1-85109-815-1.
  15. ↑ Batstone, David (2010). Not for Sale: The Return of the Global Slave Trade—and How We Can Fight It (1st revised ed.). HarperCollins. pp. 1–3. ISBN 978-0-06-199883-6.
  16. ↑ Renteln, Alison Dundes (2009). "The Use and Abuse of the Cultural Defense". In Foblets, Marie Claire; Renteln, Alison Dundes. Multicultural Jurisprudence: Comparative Perspectives on the Cultural Defense. Portland, Oregon: Hart Publishing. pp. 74–80. ISBN 978-1-84113-895-4.
  17. ↑ Hotaling, Norma (2008). "Creating An Immigration System That Works to Prevent the Sexual Abuse of Women and Children Focusing on the Offender". Save America Comprehensive Immigration Act of 2007: hearing before the Subcommittee on Immigration, Citizenship, Refugees, Border Security, and International Law of the Committee on the Judiciary, House of Representatives, One Hundred Tenth Congress, first session, on H.R. 750. November 8, 2007, Volume 4 (PDF). pp. 221–224. Archived from the original (PDF) on August 5, 2009.
  18. ↑ "Human Trafficking in California: Final Report of the California Alliance to Combat Trafficking and Slavery Task Force" (PDF). California Alliance to Combat Trafficking and Slavery Task Force. Archived from the original (PDF) on January 1, 2011. Retrieved October 17, 2013.
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