Court Orders Angel Storage Defendants to Pay Approximately One Million Dollars in Default Judgement in Labor-Trafficking Case
United States Magistrate Judge William Porter of the Eastern District of Virginia granted a default judgment against Angel Storage Construction LLC, Mario Angel, and Clara Ramirez, jointly and severally, to pay Trafficking Victims Reauthorization Protection Act (TVPRA) compensatory and punitive damages of approximately one-million dollars to 11 workers. In a subsequent Order on November 1, 2024, Judge Porter ordered the Defendants to pay approximately $76,000 in attorneys’ fees and costs.
After resolving FLSA and state wage claims against general contractor Janus International, the Plaintiffs sought a default judgment to resolve the workers’ trafficking claims against Angel Storage Construction LLC and the individuals who operated it: Mario Angel and Clara Ramirez. As to this TVPRA claim (not brought against Janus), the Complaint alleged the Angel Storage Defendants lured the workers — vulnerable, recently arrived immigrants — to work on Janus’s projects with false promises. It alleged they forced these men and women to work long hours under grueling conditions and with little pay. The Complaint alleged the defendants coerced the workers to continue working against their will with threats, abuse, and nonpayment of wages owed.
Murphy Anderson attorneys Mark Hanna and Nicole Rubin represented the workers along with co-counsel Matthew Handley and Rachel Nadas from Handley Farah & Anderson, and Legal Aid Justice Center attorneys Jason Yarashes, Kristin Donovan, and Rachel McFarland.