A Northern Virginia family is denying claims that they forced a live-in caregiver to work long hours for minimal pay, saying she was a part-time employee who could leave at any time.

       Rehani Bibi, a native of Pakistan, sued the Yahya family in federal court in Alexandria last year, saying they brought her to the country illegally and then used that tenuous status to abuse her. The family is now suing her, saying she made up the claims in an effort to get U.S. residency.

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       “The fact of the matter is that for the five years Mrs. Bibi lived in the Yahya house, she led a comfortable, middle class existence,” attorneys for the family wrote. “Mrs. Bibi is defaming innocent people to extort money to which she is not entitled, and to fraudulently remain in the U.S.”

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       Bibi worked for the Yahya family in their Leesburg home from 2013 to 2018. In her lawsuit and in an interview with The Washington Post, she said she was compelled to work at all hours of the day and night, providing child and elder care as well as cooking and cleaning. She said that often-strenuous work left her with physical pain that has persisted.

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       Bibi alleged she had to have teeth removed because the family denied her proper dental care. She said she had to find her passport and leave in the middle of the night to escape the home, with the help of an Urdu-speaking friend.

       The family has denied all of the allegations, saying Bibi chose her own hours and duties and was given all proper medical treatment. She was frequently alone on shopping trips, they say, and was granted “virtually every request .？.？. made for her comfort and well-being.”

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       While she lived in the basement, they said, her part of the house was a finished apartment with its own entrance.

       The Yahyas maintain that they also offered to pay for her to return to Pakistan multiple times and that she had instead asked whether they could help her get a green card to stay in the United States.

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       The family acknowledged that there were arguments between Bibi and her employers, but they say it was because she was a difficult employee who was on her phone too often and yelled at the elderly relative for whom she was supposed to care.

       Bibi has said that her limited English and little exposure to American society kept her confined. She also said the Yahyas told her that if she went to the police, she would be arrested for overstaying her visa.

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       Bibi is now living in Manassas and attempting to get a visa that would allow her to stay in the country as a victim of human trafficking, saying she is afraid to return to Pakistan after suing a prominent family. One of the Pakistani relatives named in the lawsuit is the founder of a major media conglomerate. He and his wife have not yet responded to the complaint.

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       Both Bibi and the Yahyas say potential witnesses have been pressured to alter their testimonies in the case through family or social ties in Pakistan. U.S. District Judge Leonie Brinkema issued an order in July barring both parties from destroying evidence or pushing anyone to take a side in the litigation.

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