Restaurant Owner Arrested After Allegedly Beating, Kidnapping and Enslaving His Cook

Pardeep Kumar, owner of the Tandoori Grill in Valencia, was arrested for allegedly keeping his cook as a slave for the last three years, reports the Los Angeles Times. The 47-year-old restauranteur is held on suspicion of human trafficking.

The unidentified 55-year-old victim arrived in America three years ago to work as a cook at Kumar’s restaurant. Upon his arrival, Kumar allegedly took his passport and brutalized him enough where he feared for his life.

The victim was then taken back to the restaurant and forced to work for up to 14 hours a day without pay for three years. He was kept inside Kumar’s house without any contact outside of Kumar and the restaurant.

One of the employees of The Tandoori Grill leaked this information to the victim’s brother back in India. The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department was also alerted via email and arrested Kumar. The victim was taken to the hospital to be treated. Afterwards, he plans on staying in America to prosecute Kumar before returning to India.

Kumar is currently being held on a $100,000 bail.

Photo: Yelp