Rancher in Slavery Case Faces More Charges : Farm labor: Witness tampering and racketeering counts added in case against flower grower. Prosecutors plan to seize $5 million of Edwin M. Ives’ property.

A federal grand jury on Thursday indicted a Ventura County flower rancher--already accused of enslaving at least 60 Mexican laborers--on charges of witness tampering, extortion and racketeering.

The grand jury, which indicted rancher Edwin M. Ives, 54, and seven others in May on a variety of civil rights and immigration violations, added three new defendants Thursday, including Ives’ 47-year-old wife, Dolly, who prosecutors say ran the ranch’s business office.

Federal prosecutors also announced their intention to seize about $5 million in Ives property, including two Ventura County ranches, a Palm Springs condominium and bank accounts. A Los Angeles residence will not be seized, authorities said.

The new indictment charges that Ives and several other defendants--all now free on bail--have attempted to bribe and intimidate witnesses since the original charges were filed.

One new defendant, an employee at Ives’ Somis ranch, allegedly beat up one witness and threatened or attempted to bribe others, according to the indictment.

Edwin Ives and the other defendants are all charged with conspiring to enslave laborers recruited from rural Mexican villages during the 1980s, forcing them to work for about $1 an hour and selling them food and sundries at inflated prices from a company store.

Prosecutors have described the case as the largest ever filed under an 81-year-old federal anti-slavery statute.

U.S. Atty. Gen. Dick Thornburgh said Thursday in a statement from Washington that expansion of the original 15-count indictment to 46 counts “demonstrates our strong determination to extend the umbrella of human and civil rights protections to all--including illegal immigrants.”

Lourdes G. Baird, U.S. attorney in Los Angeles, said that the case represents the first time federal anti-racketeering laws have been invoked in a civil rights case. That is significant because government seizures of property are allowed under such laws.

While prosecutors declared the indictment a landmark, the Iveses’ attorney, Robert M. Talcott, called it “total rubbish. A desperate attempt by the government to bolster a failing case.”

Janet I. Levine, lawyer for former ranch foreman Rony Havive, responded: “I don’t think they have any hope of getting any guilty verdicts. . . . So they are harassing people to try to win this case by attrition. They’re hoping people will quit.”

Defense attorneys said the new indictment is an attempt to cripple the Iveses’ financial ability to defend themselves.

“This is not a major corporation that can fight these charges forever and ever,” Talcott said.

Four months ago, defense attorneys said that the Griffith-Ives Co., solely owned by the Iveses, had spent hundreds of thousands of dollars on a team of lawyers. On Thursday, they would not estimate current expenses.

Prosecutors said that under the confiscation process begun this week, seized assets will be frozen and not be available for legal fees. Forfeiture would occur upon conviction.

The new indictment alleges 21 separate acts of racketeering and 15 counts of extortion. Each charge carries a maximum of 20 years imprisonment and a $250,000 fine.

Edwin Ives and two former ranch overseers are charged in all 46 counts of the new indictment. Dolly Ives, 47, is charged on 31 counts, including witness tampering and obstruction of justice.

The other two new defendants are Hector Hernandez, 34, and Jose Sandoval, 36. Both were foremen at the Somis ranch. The indictment accused Hernandez of beating up one victim and attempting to bribe numerous other victims, many of whom are from poor villages in remote parts of Mexico. Trial had been set to begin March 5, but lead prosecutor Carol Gillam said the new indictment is sure to delay it until summer.