13/08/2025
** HOTEL TRAFFICKERS CHARGED BY US ATTORNEY **
(OMAHA, Neb.) -- United States Attorney Lesley A. Woods announced that five people were charged by complaint for a range of federal violations that center around their alleged conspiracy to engage in labor trafficking, s*x trafficking, and harboring of aliens at several hotel locations across the Omaha metro area and into central Nebraska. The defendants own, operate and manage several hotels in the Omaha metro area located at the following locations where federal search warrants were executed in the early morning hours of August 12, 2025:
The AmericInn, 2920 S 13 Ct., Omaha;
The Inn (formerly Super 8), 9305 S 145th St., Omaha;
The New Victorian, 10728 L St., Omaha; and
Roadway Inn, 1110 Fort Crook Rd S, Bellevue, NE.
The five charged and arrested on August 12, 2025, are:
Kentakumar Chaudhari, a/k/a Ken Chaudhari, age 36, of Elkhorn, NE;
Rashmi Ajit Samani, a/k/a Falguni Samani, age 42, of Elkhorn, NE;
Amit Prahladbhai Chaudhari, a/k/a Amit, age 32, of Omaha;
Amit Babubhai Chaudhari, a/k/a Matt, age 33, of Omaha; and
Maheshkumar Chaudhari, a/k/a Mahesh, age 38, of Norfolk, NE.
The redacted complaint affidavit contains a more complete summary of the allegations. Criminal Complaints are charging documents that contain one or more individual counts that are merely accusations. Every defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
Federal, state, and local law enforcement partners worked together today to safely execute search warrants at 14 business premises and two residential locations associated with the defendants. Four of those premises were either hotels or motels, and the remaining businesses were “Brow and Lash” salons located in the Westroads Mall and at other Omaha metro area locations.
During the operation, law enforcement officers rescued 10 minors from an alleged labor trafficking conspiracy that involved putting children under the age of twelve years old to work at the hotels for long hours with little to no pay. Seventeen adult victims were also rescued from the same conspiracy. The complaint affidavit details the allegedly exploitative conditions these victims were subjected to while being required to pay the defendants for their lodging at the hotels. The lodging accommodations were unclean, unsafe, and unhealthy. Online reviews for the hotel locations detail the firsthand accounts of travelers who occupied the same locations briefly. On one occasion, a source working with the federal government entered a hotel room where immigrant victims were sleeping on the floor of the room with cockroaches crawling on the victims as they slept.
Separately, the United States Attorney’s Office has alleged that one or more of the defendants were engaged in a s*x trafficking conspiracy that allegedly victimized both minors and adults. S*x trafficking was not only allowed at the hotels according to complaint affidavit allegations but also encouraged, protected from law enforcement detection, and s*x trafficking victims at the hotels were subjected not only to the traditional perpetrators of a s*x trafficking scheme but also to hotel management and employees victimizing them as well.
Beyond these allegations, multiple defendants are alleged to have maintained these hotels as premises to conduct drug trafficking freely. Drug traffickers allegedly received protection from law enforcement in the same manner in which human traffickers were also shielded by the hotel owners and managers. Overdoses were a common problem, and at least one hotel had to keep Narcan at the front desk as a result. One source cited described a stairwell of one of the hotels as being littered with drug needles. Drug use was open and notorious in the parking lots according to eyewitnesses and to some online guest reviews.
At least one of the defendants is charged with a conspiracy to defraud the United States government by instigating a criminal scheme designed to obtain U visas under fraudulent circumstances. The U nonimmigrant status (U visa) is set aside for victims of certain crimes who have suffered mental or physical abuse and are helpful to law enforcement or government officials in the investigation or prosecution of criminal activity. Allegations in the complaint affidavits reveal that one hotel owner hired a worker at a hotel to stage a fictitious robbery of one of the Brow and Lash salons in 2022. The goal was to secure a U visa for one of the other defendants by making her a “victim” of the robbery.
The complaint further alleges one of the defendants engaged in conversations involving questions about what it would cost to bring someone from India to America and negotiating various prices. A number of hotel employees crossed the Arizona border several years ago and reported to Customs and Border Patrol they would be residing at one or more of the defendant’s hotels, thereby indicating those arrangements were made prior to entering the country illegally. Furthermore, the complaint alleges that aliens were being transported by co-conspirators between the State of Nebraska and the State of Washington for the purpose of fraudulently obtaining Washington state driver’s licenses for around $1,000 per identification document.
The various alleged conspiracies generated significant illegal proceeds, and as part of today’s operation, significant cash assets were seized to include more than $565,000 in U.S. currency that are alleged to be involved in money laundering. The United States filed a notice of pending lawsuit on the hotel properties to prevent their sale or transfer while this investigation is ongoing. The United States Marshals Service is actively recovering assets in this investigation alleged to have been illegally acquired and hoarded by the defendants. Also, seized during this operation was an undetermined amount illicit drugs that will be quantified as this investigation progresses.
Several vigilant citizens made complaints to Human Trafficking Hotlines about child workers and s*x trafficking issues at one or more of these hotels, and we commend the members of our community who help shine a light on these unspeakable crimes and give a voice to the voiceless.
Due to the number of victims already identified in this ongoing federal investigation and the breadth and combination of the alleged charges, the FBI has requested that anyone having additional information on the crimes occurring at these locations or other business locations in Nebraska where similar crimes occurred, please contact the Omaha FBI field office to report that information.
United States Attorney Lesley Woods said, “There is no evil greater than the evil that seeks to trap, oppress, and exploit human beings for profit or pleasure. Where that evil exists, Nebraska law enforcement working together at the federal, state, and local levels, as occurred in this case, will seek it, find it, root it out, and ensure every rescued victim has an opportunity to obtain justice and freedom from their captors.”
U.S. Attorney Woods commends the unparalleled investigative coordination and accomplishment of this case achieved by the combined efforts of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Department of Homeland Security, the Sarpy County Sheriff’s Office, the Omaha Police Department, the Nebraska State Patrol, the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation Branch, the United States Marshals Service, and the Nebraska State Attorney General’s Office. U.S. Attorney Woods added, “When so many law enforcement agencies come together as one team, united in their relentless pursuit of justice, there is no organized crime network operating within Nebraska’s borders that can escape identification and accountability.”
Special Agent in Charge Eugene Kowel, leader of the Omaha FBI Field Office, stated, “Human trafficking is a form of modern-day slavery. This investigation revealed victims right here in the heart of the heartland forced into s*xual activity, living and working in dangerous and filthy conditions, and extorted to work in grueling jobs with little to no pay. We will always stand shoulder to shoulder with our partners to aggressively identify and apprehend perpetrators of human trafficking, hold them accountable, and obtain justice for victims. Our approach to these horrific cases is always centered on the victims. We encourage anyone who may be a victim or have information about human trafficking to call us. We will continue to surge resources to arrest violent offenders in our community as part of the FBI’s Summer Heat Initiative.”
“There is nothing more reprehensible than exploiting human beings, particularly children, for s*x, abusive labor conditions or deliberately violating U.S. immigration laws to profit from their suffering,” said Special Agent in Charge Mark Zito of ICE HSI Kansas City, which covers Nebraska. “These criminals hide in the shadows, prey on the vulnerable and show no regard for the laws for the laws or values of our nation. Their crimes are calculated to be difficult to uncover but HSI and our federal partners have no intention of stopping until these predators are brought to justice and every victim is freed from their grip.”
Contact
Amy Donato (402) 661-3700
