In a recent case that has drawn significant attention, Augusto Mateo Francisco, a 34-year-old man from Dunkirk, New York, has been sentenced to a lengthy 30 years behind bars. He was found guilty of heinous crimes, including forcing Guatemalan migrants to toil away on farms and the chilling kidnapping and repeated sexual assault of a 16-year-old girl.
According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of New York, Francisco was penalized for two counts of forced labor along with a count of transporting a minor. Prosecutors revealed that his actions included misusing the fears of his victims, making them work for little pay while falsely inflating their debts once they arrived in New York. He held complete control over their earnings and threatened them with deportation if they dared to resist.
In a detailed filing for sentencing, the prosecutors highlighted the grim working conditions faced by the victims. They described how Francisco profited off their forced labor while subjecting them to long hours and degrading tasks. In cases of dissent, he resorted to threats of violence — not just towards them, but also targeting their families back in Guatemala.
In addition to his labor exploitation, Francisco’s predatory behavior extended to a teenage girl he had brought to the U.S. from Guatemala alongside her mother. Reports claim that after isolating the girl when her mother fell ill, he began sexually abusing her when she was only 15 years old. This abuse reportedly continued until she was 16, leading to his eventual arrest.
The troubling saga escalated in May 2020 when Francisco kidnapped the girl and confined her in a trailer in Ripley, New York, merely 25 miles from Dunkirk. For nearly two weeks, he repeatedly assaulted her, forcing her to hide from potential rescuers in a concealed area within the trailer. It wasn’t until police intervened that she was freed.
Although the victim and her mother managed to escape to Georgia, Francisco wasn’t far behind. He tracked them down, abducted her again, and brought her back to his trailer for additional assaults before law enforcement was able to rescue her for the second time.
The residual effects of his reprehensible actions didn’t end with his capture. Prosecutors reinforced that he deployed the same intimidation tactics against the teenage girl and her mother as he did with his labor victims, threatening to harm them and their relatives if they spoke out.
In contrast to the overwhelming evidence against Francisco, his public defender urged for a lighter sentence of only 15 years, suggesting that he had taken responsibility and expressed remorse. However, the judge ruled in favor of a harsher punishment, ultimately siding with the prosecution’s request.
Federal authorities stated that after serving his prison term, Francisco will remain under supervision for the rest of his life and must register as a sex offender. This sentence reflects the grim reality that exploitation and abuse continue to shatter lives.
If you or someone you know is in immediate danger, please reach out to law enforcement by calling 911. For anyone suspicious of trafficking situations, the national hotline can be reached at 1-888-373-7888.
