Two U.S. citizens who fled a Korean doomsday group in Fiji have announced their willingness to return to the island nation to provide testimony, aiming to jumpstart a stalled human trafficking case.
The women escaped separately to the United States following years of alleged brutal treatment, including forced labor, within the organization known as Grace Road. They lodged individual complaints with Fijian authorities in late 2024 and early 2025.
One of the accusers has made a particularly explosive claim: that she was ordered to provide complimentary beauty treatments, such as facials and foot massages, to high-ranking local figures while living in the sect’s care. Among the alleged recipients was former Prime Minister Frank Bainimarama.
Grace Road, which numbers roughly 300 members primarily of Korean descent, has been described in past reports as having leveraged political ties to become a major business force in Fiji.
“I want Grace Road to know I’m not afraid of them any longer,” one woman stated to a news outlet. “They hold no power over me.”
A legal representative for the group, Nilesh Prasad, has strongly refuted the accusations, stating that the organization “categorically denies any allegation of human trafficking, slavery, servitude, forced labor, unlawful compulsory labor, debt bondage, assault, or any cruel, degrading or coercive practice.” He also denied that anyone was forced to provide unpaid services to officials.
A separate deadline looms: Fiji must demonstrate progress in combating human trafficking by March or risk being downgraded to the lowest tier in a U.S. State Department report, a move that could jeopardize millions in annual American development aid.
Both women have expressed readiness to travel back to Fiji and assist authorities. They have asked not to be identified publicly out of concern for their families’ privacy. The case was forwarded to Fiji’s director of public prosecutions last year, but no charges have been filed, and the agency has not responded to inquiries about its status.
The first woman’s November 2024 complaint alleged she was forcibly separated from her children, subjected to public beatings, and compelled to work long hours without pay in the group’s businesses. “I’m ready to return to Fiji as soon as possible to give evidence,” she said, adding she eventually regained custody of her two children after fleeing in late 2024.
The complaint also claimed she provided complimentary treatments to Bainimarama at a cult-owned beauty salon. “The ex-prime minister received a free facial and a little foot massage,” she recounted, stating the gift was given on orders from Grace Road leaders. She further alleged she was made to give similar free services on at least three occasions to then-Agriculture Minister Vatimi Rayalu and his wife. Bainimarama, convicted in 2024 on separate charges, did not respond to inquiries. Rayalu passed away in mid-2025.
The second American woman originally escaped Grace Road in 2017 but became trapped again last year after returning to Fiji to attempt to rescue her mother. She now plans to go back with a cousin whose mother is also in the group. “My hope is that their eyes open to the reality of their situation,” she said. “I want them freed not just physically, but psychologically and emotionally from the group’s control.”
Another lawyer for Grace Road, Dennis Miralis, stated in a letter that the organization “has not been presented with any independent evidence to support the allegations.”