GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. - A Greenville, Mich., couple were arrested Friday on federal charges of human trafficking and immigration violations. The arrests were made by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) special agents, and announced by U.S. Attorney Margaret M. Chiara, Western District of Michigan.

A federal grand jury indicted Pedro Ramos, 45, alleging that he trafficked a young Mexican woman and held her in involuntary servitude. The victim was an illegal alien whom he recruited, transported and harbored. The indictment alleges that Ramos' human trafficking violations included aggravated sexual abuse and attempted aggravated sexual abuse.

Ramos and his wife, Laurie Ann Ramos, 43, both Mexican nationals, appeared in federal court Friday for their initial appearance. They will be arraigned this week before U.S. Magistrate Judge Joseph G. Scoville in Grand Rapids. The judge will determine whether the Ramoses should be detained pending trial.

If convicted, the couple could be sentenced to up to life in prison.

ICE and the U.S. Department of Labor's Office of the Inspector General conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Elisa Castrolugo, Western District of Michigan, is prosecuting the case.

-- ICE --