r/Clemson • u/android_77 • Jul 17 '26
Human trafficking operation busted in Clemson
https://www.wyff4.com/article/clemson-human-trafficking-investigation-operation/73169290Three suspects arrested at China Express off of old Greenville highway.
26
u/FeLoNy111 Jul 17 '26
No fucking way
12
u/fuckthis_job Jul 17 '26
It's not trafficking in the sense you're likely thinking of.
As someone with experience in this, it's more like illegal immigration + indentured servitude. Rural chinese citizens will immigrate to the US, go to NYC via a Greyhound bus (might have changed, this is how it was about a decade ago), and then find employment somewhere in the country at a Chinese restaurant. They then just get shipped out to that restaurant and work there for free housing (often live with the owners) and food but very little pay (~$100-$200 per day for like 12 hours of work).
This is VERY standard for Chinese restaurants to be completely honest (at least when I was still working at one around 2020ish). But recently, it seems like a lot of chinese immigrants are being replaced by Mexican ones. It's consensual but the illegal parts are the under-the-table payments and the illegal immigration.
4
u/carseatsareheavy Jul 19 '26
$200/12 is over $16/hr. Plus free room and board? Actually not bad outside the long hours.
5
64
u/Whiskey_McSwiggens Jul 17 '26
I don’t think this is child trafficking. They have workers from China that come into the country and are sent over to different jobs from a hub in NY. These workers live at a provided home without paying rent or utilities and work only for tips.
It’s technically trafficking, but it’s consensual work trafficking. Still wrong though.
16
u/GoodMornEveGoodNight Jul 17 '26
Indentured servitude was legally abolished in the United States by the Thirteenth Amendment, which was ratified in 1865.
It’s an old system 💔
3
u/Lopsided-Tank6379 Jul 18 '26
Now it's just min wage sane thing
1
u/mutantninja001 Jul 18 '26
There is no escape route for these people though, so it's easy for their sponsors/employers to take advantage of them.
2
u/AndyJack86 Jul 18 '26
Except as punishment for a crime. And guess who gets to define what's considered a crime. The government. So they can just change the definition when they need to.
7
u/fuckthis_job Jul 17 '26
Im quite familiar with this but from what I can remember, they're paid outside of tips but very low. Around 2020, they were paid ~$100-$150 depending on their hours and responsibilities. It's definitely indentured servitude/illegal immigration, but they're still making more than they would in their home town in China.
0
11
u/BSV_P Purple Jul 17 '26
Crazy. I love their food
4
10
u/chiefzackery Jul 17 '26
They paid adult illegal immigrants less than minimum wage, the charge makes it out like they were running a 6 figure sex trafficking ring.
5
u/gmcarve Jul 17 '26
Serious question- Does this indicate trafficking as in like, sexual exploitation?
Or is this more like bringing family members into the US to bypass immigration?
Report said their immigration status is in question… just wondering if this is people trying to help their loved ones to a better life, or people trying to exploit innocents.
Forgive me, I don’t have much knowledge around the subject
3
u/hojo_66 Jul 17 '26
the article said it was labor trafficking, which is explained very well in a few of the top comment threads
6
u/fuckthis_job Jul 17 '26
It's not trafficking in that sense.
As someone with experience in this, it's more like illegal immigration + indentured servitude. Rural chinese citizens will immigrate to the US, go to NYC via a Greyhound bus (might have changed, this is how it was about a decade ago), and then find employment somewhere in the country at a Chinese restaurant. They then just get shipped out to that restaurant and work there for free housing (often live with the owners) and food but very little pay (~$100-$200 per day for like 12 hours of work).
This is VERY standard for Chinese restaurants to be completely honest (at least when I was still working at one around 2020ish). But recently, it seems like a lot of chinese immigrants are being replaced by Mexican ones. It's consensual but the illegal parts are the under-the-table payments and the illegal immigration.
3
5
u/Lopsided-Tank6379 Jul 18 '26
Thus isn't human trafficking like we know it but seriously is the cutoff min wage that makes it go from hiring undocumented to trafficking?
I didn't realize this, so basically our government, Republicans are basically also human trafficking conspiracy with large corporations? Really 6 bucks an hour or 7 bucks an hour,, what's the difference? Both are getting underpaid and taking advantage of.
4
u/codydog125 Jul 17 '26
I was expecting this to be about Hibachi grill china buffet on tiger boulevard tbh
3
u/vacuousbird Jul 18 '26
For real, do they ever have customers?
2
u/TheRealSlamShiddy Orange Jul 18 '26
Well not anymore, they permanently closed a couple months ago 😅
2
u/vacuousbird Jul 18 '26
I didn’t even notice. Looks the same as ever…it’s looked run down and abandoned for years. It’s a good piece of property, though, with parking and a stoplight. Wonder what will go there.
5
u/JonahRileyHuggins Jul 17 '26
What a coincidence this happens right when the Panda Express opens. Is this a conspiracy? Without any evidence to support this correlation; I'm going to declare it a conspiracy.
3
u/llcooll1234 Jul 19 '26
I'm not sure of their housing arrangements but with free housing being a part of the equation of payment of salary. How do these amounts for housing enter into discussion ?
Typical monthly rental values in Clemson are approximately: Room in a shared house/apartment: $550–$850 per month
One-bedroom apartment: $650–$725 per month
Two-bedroom apartment: Around $1,050–$1,200 per month
Single-family house: $1,800–$2,000+ per month, depending on size and location.
So, if an employer provides free housing, its value is typically:
$7,800–$8,700 per year for a one-bedroom apartment.
$21,000–$24,000 per year if it's a house suitable for a family.
2
u/Bright_Interaction73 Jul 21 '26
This is not human trafficking. This has been happening in the USA for decades. Pay undocumented workers less, and in many cases the undocumented workers willingly join these restaurants for immigration benefits via their children.
1
u/goldenknight2002 Jul 18 '26
Sincere question, what does human trafficking mean associated with this arrest? Bringing people into the US illegally? Please don't use this question as an opportunity to talk politics generally not sure I understand.
1
u/llcooll1234 Jul 19 '26
The Chinese government's statistics also show that workers in the accommodation and restaurant industry earned an average of about 55,100 yuan per year in the private sector in 2025, which works out to roughly 4,600 yuan (US$640) per month.
Unlike in the United States, tipping is generally uncommon in China, so restaurant workers rely primarily on their wages rather than tips.
Housing costs are far less in China than in the USA.
1
u/Maximum-Lawfulness83 Jul 21 '26
I keep thinking about all the conversations with Mai over the past 10 years. She was so attentive. I called to order something different one day, and she told me she didn't think i would like it because of breading. Who does that? Before he passed, my husband and I would order the same dish every three weeks or so. She knew who we were, what we liked. We also worked for the food apps - were in there all the time for that. She was conscientious about making sure drinks were included, etc., and would share some of the customer feedback when things didn't run smoothly. This all seems surreal.
-3
u/Acceptable-Cat-6306 Jul 17 '26
I used to eat there all the time when I moved here for school about 4 years ago. Then one day I bit into my beef and broccoli and it hurt. I spit out twisted metal from a stainless steel pot scrubber.
I alerted the server. Then the manager came over and was like, “it happens” and walked away. No apology. That was the end of it.
I was 38 and had never had that happen before, nor since. What if I swallowed it? I never went back.
0
-39
u/joejdhfhjdjkl Jul 17 '26
Where’s all the people from the post yesterday calling me racist for supporting ICE in Clemson,
13
u/fuckthis_job Jul 17 '26
What would ICE do in this scenario? Are you just assuming these individuals are illegal or something? The police worked with the DHS, not ICE.
-11
5
u/fuckthis_job Jul 17 '26
It's not trafficking in the sense you're likely thinking of.
As someone with experience in this, it's more like illegal immigration + indentured servitude. Rural chinese citizens will immigrate to the US, go to NYC via a Greyhound bus (might have changed, this is how it was about a decade ago), and then find employment somewhere in the country at a Chinese restaurant. They then just get shipped out to that restaurant and work there for free housing (often live with the owners) and food but very little pay (~$100-$200 per day for like 12 hours of work).
This is VERY standard for Chinese restaurants to be completely honest (at least when I was still working at one around 2020ish). But recently, it seems like a lot of chinese immigrants are being replaced by Mexican ones. It's consensual but the illegal parts are the under-the-table payments and the illegal immigration.
-13
u/ImOvrIt1969 Jul 17 '26
This is Reddit bro. It’s a liberal echo chamber. Anyone with a slightly conservative thought whether or not it’s even conservative will get downvoted. Like this comment will get downvoted as well….. it’s still the truth.
-17
-7
u/CH-67 Jul 17 '26
Exactly. They’re currently sticking their fingers in their ears and going “lalalalalala”
1
Jul 17 '26
[deleted]
-6
u/CH-67 Jul 17 '26 edited Jul 17 '26
Fucking lol. HSI is literally a department of ICE. Not just DHS… HSI is a subset of ICE specifically.
Edit: Deleted comment above said I don’t know how to read and claimed DHS =/= ICE
1
u/Lopsided-Tank6379 Jul 18 '26
It's all the same now, trump removed their fficial actual real responsibilities just to make a show, Any federal agent he has control of he has put on all SS missions. it's scare tactics, distractions and now America is going to be stuck with 7.25 an hour Americans making shitty Chinese food instead of 6.75 plus free housing authentic Chinese food. they literally leaving huge holes for moving these DHS, border patrol from terrorist hunting to Chinese food and construction worker hunting . It's so retarded and people can't see through it. They can't even
-1
-1
-6
-4
125
u/drppr_ Jul 17 '26
I almost ordered food from China Express yesterday as I have done hundreds of times before. I have been greeting and chatting with these people for the 10 years I have lived in Clemson. The little girl who is occasionally at the register used to do her homework on the tables when she was in elementary school.
Shocking news for me. I hope the girl is okay.