Press Release

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Tuesday, August 18, 2025
info@olivetwatch.com

Trafficking Victims Urge Immediate Action by DOJ, California Attorney General, National Accreditation Board Against Olivet University

SACRAMENTO, CA – Victims and survivors of Olivet University, alongside human trafficking advocates, are demanding swift and decisive action by California Attorney General Rob Bonta, the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ), and the Association for Biblical Higher Education (ABHE) to end the continued abuses at Olivet University, including labor trafficking, visa fraud, financial misrepresentation, and educational fraud.

During the Biden Administration, the DOJ launched an investigation into Olivet University as New York acted to close campuses in the state and federal criminal charges were levied against Olivet leadership. However, the Biden DOJ failed to act as abuse of vulnerable foreign students continued. The beleaguered university also faces federal investigation by Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) for money laundering, human labor trafficking, and visa fraud.

“Students are often recruited with promises of legitimate higher education and spiritual growth,” said NAME, Cult Education Institute. “In reality, these vulnerable foreign nationals are instantly trapped in a coercive system of forced labor and visa dependency. All the while, Jang’s criminal organization maintains a religious exemption to shield itself from oversight and accountability in the United States.”

“What Olivet University did was not education; it was modern slavery,” said Olivet survivor and human trafficking advocate Sophie Y. “Students were coerced to work 60 to 70 hours per week, earning almost nothing, subjected to constant fear and intimidation. California and federal authorities must act decisively to end these abuses immediately.”

Victims Call For Immediate Action:

  • California Attorney General Rob Bonta must issue cease-and-desist orders against Olivet University’s campus in Anza, CA for continued student enrollment and shutter the campus. AG Bonta can also initiate further investigations under the Unfair Competition Law (UCL) against Olivet leader for ongoing fraudulent activities and operating illegal Amazon store-fronts and engaging in illegal labor practices.

  • The United States Department of Justice (DOJ) should immediately accelerate criminal investigations that failed to move under the Biden DOJ and swiftly conclude ongoing inquiries to spare victims further harm. The DOJ can also coordinate with the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Student and Exchange Visitor Program (SEVP) to immediately suspend Olivet’s authority to issue F-1 student visas.

  • The Association for Biblical Higher Education (ABHE) should immediately revoke Olivet’s accreditation based on substantial documented evidence of systemic fraud, abuse, and criminal convictions.

  • California’s Bureau for Private Postsecondary Education (BPPE) should formally refer Olivet University to federal authorities for enforcement coordination.

  • California regulators petition the U.S. Department of Education to initiate a compliance review of ABHE’s continued accreditation of Olivet.

  • Notify international diplomatic missions and student service organizations about Olivet’s revoked licensure and risks to their nationals.

Critical Questions Left Unanswered: 

  • Why has the ABHE allowed Olivet University to remain accredited despite criminal convictions and regulatory violations?

  • Why has the DOJ not acted decisively, given many years of victim testimonies and clear evidence of federal law violations?

  • Why does Olivet continue enrolling vulnerable international students despite its documented history of visa fraud and labor trafficking?

  • How long must vulnerable victims wait to be rescued from forced labor and years at campuses in California, Missouri, Florida, and elsewhere?

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About Olivet Watch:

Olivet Watch (www.OlivetWatch.com) is a survivor-led advocacy organization dedicated to exposing the abuses committed by Olivet University and its founder, David Jang, and helping fellow students escape high control tactics that traffic and abuse vulnerable foreign nationals at locations throughout the United States. Olivet Watch supports victims of human trafficking, forced labor, educational fraud, and financial coercion, while urging state and federal authorities to take decisive enforcement actions to protect vulnerable foreign students and their families. Victims and their families currently wishing to escape Olivet can reach out to info@olivetwatch.com.

Survivor testimony provided to HSI and California investigators showed how Olivet leaders used high control tactics including monitoring communications with the outside world, using student passports and falsified documents to start Amazon storefronts and other e-commerce schemes to generate money for the organization, and forcing students to beg for money from families in their home country to pay for education that never materialized.

Many survivors report severe mental, emotional, and physical harm, trapped by visa obligations and fear of retaliation. A full account of crimes and abuses can be found here.

Recounted video testimony shared with state and federal investigators can be viewed here: Video 1, Video 2, and Video 3.