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OGDEN — A Washington man is being held in a northern Utah jail on charges accusing him of taking a woman from Michigan so she could "work off a debt."
Julian Arellano-Lopez, 47, of Des Moines, Washington, was booked into the Weber County Jail on Monday and charged Tuesday with kidnapping, a second-degree felony; and human smuggling, a third-degree felony.
On Sunday, police were sent to a Walmart on Wall Avenue in Ogden after a woman had called dispatchers saying she was taken against her will. Through a translator, the woman told police that Arellano-Lopez, an ex-boyfriend, had followed her from Mexico to Michigan, according to charging documents. She also said Arellano-Lopez allegedly abused her during their prior relationship.
The woman told police Arellano-Lopez drove to Michigan and "had told her to get into the car" because they were going to Seattle so she could "work off a debt," the charges state. She told police that she feared Arellano-Lopez would physically hurt her if she did not comply. During the drive west, she said she told Arellano-Lopez she wanted to leave and go home, and he allegedly threatened to have people in Mexico harm her children, who were still living in the country.
The woman also provided her phone to police, and officers found numerous messages from Arellano-Lopez, including a video that includes him threatening "to track down" the woman over a monetary debt, "even if it took him five or 10 years," charging documents say.
Police later interviewed Arellano-Lopez, who said he believed the woman stole from a "coyote," a term used for someone who smuggles people into the United States. Police say he told them he had picked up the woman from Michigan, and that he was aware she voiced her desire to leave the car. He convinced the woman to stay in the car after mentioning the presence of U.S. Border Patrol agents in the area, the charges state.
Based on their prior relationship and the allegation that Arellano-Lopez drove the woman across the country, police say in charging documents that they believe there is sufficient evidence to charge Arellano-Lopez under Utah's human trafficking statute.
Arellano-Lopez was booked into jail sometime on Monday, where he is being held without bail. He is scheduled to appear in Ogden's 2nd District Court for the first time on Thursday.
