18 Indicted in Ukraine Smuggling Ring
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Times staff and wire reports
A federal grand jury indicted 18 people Wednesday on charges of running a sophisticated human-smuggling operation that funneled hundreds of people from Ukraine into the United States and forced some into prostitution.
The 18 were charged with conspiracy to transport and harbor illegal immigrants. Ten of them, including alleged ringleaders Tetyana Komisaruk and Sergei Mezheritsky, also were charged with conspiracy to smuggle women into the country for the purposes of prostitution, Assistant U.S. Atty. Dan Saunders said.
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