NEW YORK, June 16 (UPI) -- A nanny from Chile is suing her New York employers, alleging the couple kept her locked in a room with their three children, who abused her physically.
In a lawsuit filed in U.S. District Court, Felicitas del Carmen Villanueva Garnica, 50, claims Malu Custer Edwards and Micky Hurley brought her to the United States in December 2010 "under false pretenses and for the purpose of unlawfully compelling her to care for their young children," the New York Post reported Sunday.
She alleges she endured three months of "forced labor" that amounted to "involuntary servitude" with only one day off the entire time, the newspaper said.
The couple's children, ages 6, 8 and 10, often hit her and once nearly knocked her unconscious by slamming a refrigerator door into her head, she alleges.
Villanueva contends she was ordered never to leave the couple's home or to speak to anyone other than family members. She also says she was the victim of constant verbal denigration.
She said she was promised $10 per hour but was paid just $800 a month, or about $2 per hour.
Edwards, 29, is a graphic designer and Hurley, 35, is an interior decorator. Both come from well-connected Chilean families.
"All Chile knows them," Villanueva said of Edwards' family. "They come from a family with lots of resources."
The couple denies the alleged mistreatment, the Post said.
"The claims are completely without merit and will be fully refuted in court," their attorney, Robin Alperstein, told the newspaper.
