A horrifying case of exploitation involving not only forced labor but the threat of retaliation has resulted in a federal grand jury indictment against the president and founder of Cathedral Bible College in South Carolina.

Reginald Wayne Miller is accused of forcing two foreign students at the college to work with only sparse pay from 2012 until this year. The students also were subject to unbearable living conditions.

Investigators with Homeland Security claim that Miller forced them to work, sometimes more than 40 hours a week, on campus and at his residence, for as little as $25 per week. If they objected or failed to follow his orders, he threatened to cancel their visas and deport them to their home countries.

Just because someone is foreign, student or otherwise, does not excuse an employer from U.S. wage and hour laws.

During their investigation, the feds said at least eight Cathedral Bible College students reported that the classes offered at the college “were not real,” and that the main focus of the school is having students work full-time hours.

Living conditions at the college reportedly were deplorable — long intervals without any hot water, heat or air conditioning. The food was past its sell-by date, minimal and lacking in nutrition.

Read the whole story on The Sun News.