Lawyers: Two kind to others

BY ROBERT E. KESSLER. robert.kessler@newsday.com

Even though Varsha and Mahender Sabhnani, a wealthy Muttontown couple, were convicted of enslaving two Indonesian women, they should receive mercy because of their charity and kindness to others, defense attorneys argue in a court brief.

"Through their financial contributions and personal efforts, Mahender and Varsha have literally transformed the lives of hundreds, if not thousands of people in some of the poorest parts of the world," the defense attorneys say in papers submitted for today's sentencing hearing for Varsha Sabhnani in U.S. District Court in Central Islip.

Further, defense attorneys for Varsha Sabhnani argue that many of her bizarre actions - including torturing the women, known by the single names Enung and Samirah - were partly the result of a metabolic imbalance caused by a starvation diet, according to several sources familiar with sealed court papers. Varsha Sabhnani put herself on the diet and dropped from 300 pounds to 130 pounds in a few years, the sources said.

She also underwent four or five painful operations to remove large flaps of skin that resulted from the sudden weight loss, the sources said.

In papers, defense attorneys refer to a report prepared by a psychiatrist they hired and write that "the report provides important insight into the rather severe medical and psychological issues which Mrs. Sabhnani was experiencing."

In apparent reference to the sealed psychiatrist's report, federal prosecutor Mark Lesko wrote in court papers that the argument does not explain or excuse Varsha Sabhnani's conduct for several years until the women escaped in 2007.

"Indeed, her shocking and despicable conduct is arguably made worse by the evidence of her ability to selectively show some form of kindness to others who were not held in a state of servitude and tortured in her home for years," Lesko wrote.

Varsha Sabhnani faces from 12 to 15 years in prison under federal sentencing guidelines. Her husband, who is scheduled to be sentenced tomorrow, faces 5 to 6 years.

Varsha Sabhnani's defense attorney, Jeffery Hoffman, declined to comment yesterday, as did Mahender Sabhnani's attorney, Stephen Scaring, and prosecutors.

To illustrate what they said were the Sabhnanis' good character and "level of commitment to charitable causes which is truly extraordinary," defense attorneys submitted hundreds of pages of letters from supporters under seal, although some were quoted in public court documents.

In one of the excerpts a person who identifies himself as a trustee of an orphanage in Indonesia writes: "Varsha and Mahender Sabhnani ... have supported this home for our 150 children for many year. ... Without them we would have had to close down."

ART/GRAPHICS: PHOTOS BY JAMES CARBONE-1) Mahender Sabhnani. 2) Varsha Sabhnani