Top Turkish diplomats accused of human trafficking and fraud in Washington, DC, court: report

The second-highest ranking diplomat at the Turkish embassy in Washington, D.C., along with his wife, also a diplomat, have been accused of human trafficking, fraud, unjust enrichment, breach of contract and violations of U.S. labor and wage laws, the Nordic Monitor news website reported.

Hüsnü Sinan Ertay, the former deputy chief of mission at the Turkish embassy in Washington, D.C., and his wife, Anıl Özge Ertay, a diplomatic adviser, are accused of smuggling Sharon Thomas Agdipa from the Philippines to the United States, where she was allegedly subjected to forced labor exposed to abusive conditions.

The lawsuit, filed May 5 in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, accuses the couple of failing to pay Agdipa her rightful wages, denying her basic needs and threatening her with deportation to control her bring.

According to the allegations, the Ertays promised Agdipa a job as a nanny with a fair wage and a private room in their Washington home, which is in a gated community on Embassy Park Drive NW. Agdipa's lawyers say she arrived in Washington in February 2020 expecting the terms of her employment contract – a 35-hour week at $14 an hour. However, the reality was completely different.

Agdipa was allegedly forced to work more than 80 hours a week, with her duties extending beyond childcare to also include cleaning, cooking and even gardening. Although she worked around the clock to meet the Ertays' demands, she never received overtime pay.

The complaint states that although Agdipa was paid her basic salary through mobile money transfers, the Ertays regularly forced her to withdraw large amounts of cash from her account and return them to them. For example, in June 2020, Agdipa initially received $1,960 for the month, but then had to pay back $1,350, leaving her with only $610 left.

Agdipa claims that over the course of 15 months, she had to pay back about a third of her wages to the Ertays, which equates to about $9,450. Her lawyers say she suffered verbal abuse, was denied regular meals and was not allowed to socialize with other nannies. For a time, Agdipa was locked in a windowless basement where she slept, even though her contract promised a private room.

The lawsuit also alleges that the Turkish diplomats intervened when the U.S. State Department's Office of Foreign Missions (OFM) conducted a standard audit to ensure that Agdipa was being treated in accordance with the contract. The Ertays allegedly instructed Agdipa to lie to OFM officials about her working conditions, forcing them to falsely claim that she was receiving the agreed wage. When U.S. labor laws raised the minimum wage for domestic workers in July 2020, the Ertays issued a revised contract for Agdipa, but the terms of the new contract were never fully adhered to, the lawsuit says.

The couple is also accused of repeatedly threatening to call the police and immigration authorities to have Agdipa deported if she complained about the conditions or tried to leave her job. The complaint states that the Ertays exploited Agdipa's precarious immigration status and lack of knowledge of U.S. labor laws to maintain control over her.

Agdipa's lawyers argue that their client suffered both emotionally and physically under the Ertays' harsh working conditions. She was denied regular meals, forbidden from cooking her own food, and denied medical care when needed. The lawsuit also alleges that Agdipa was denied medical leave even though her contract guaranteed such benefits.

One particularly disturbing allegation describes how Hüsnü Sinan Ertay frequently entered the basement where Agdipa slept, as it doubled as a makeshift closet and bathroom. The complaint alleges that Ertay forced her to leave the basement in the early morning and late evening hours so that he could use the room.

The situation escalated on May 5, 2021, when Agdipa fled the Ertays' home after an abusive argument. She left most of her belongings behind and sought refuge with a Filipino acquaintance in the neighborhood. Subsequently, the labor attaché of the Philippine Embassy in Washington intervened and referred Agdipa to a legal service that helped her stay safe and take legal action.

Although the U.S. government was notified when Agdipa testified about the abuse and forced labor, no criminal charges were filed against the Turkish diplomats. However, the lawsuit alleges multiple violations, including the Federal Victims of Trafficking and Violence Protection Reauthorization Act (TVPRA), the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), the DC Minimum Wage Revision Act, and the DC Wage Payment and Collection Law .

The future of the case remains uncertain, particularly because the Ertays, no longer based in Washington, have since returned to senior positions at the Turkish Foreign Ministry in Ankara.