W.Va. couple allegedly used adopted Black children as ‘slaves,’ judge says

A couple in West Virginia was arrested and face trial after some of their adopted children were allegedly found locked in a building.

Donald Ray Lantz and Jeanne Kay Whitefeather are charged with civil rights violations, human trafficking and forced labor.

A judge says the indictment alleges the children were used as ‘’slaves.’’ The couple adopted five Black children from a shelter to do forced labor and live in deplorable conditions, NBC News reports.

Two teens were found in a shed next to the couple’s home last October and a 9-year-old girl was alone in a loft at the house, the AP reports.

Whitefeather and Lantz are being held in jail in Kanawha County on $500,000 bail, according to court records. They both pleaded not guilty.

They face a September trial.

The Associated Press contributed to this story.

Download the FREE WPXI News app for breaking news alerts.

Follow Channel 11 News on Facebook and Twitter. | Watch WPXI NOW

©2024 Cox Media Group