A 24-year-old new mother calls her life 'heaven' now, but it didn't always used to be that way. In 1998, at just 8-years-old, Shyima Hall was sold into slavery by her parents in Egypt. She spent the next four years working 20 hours days for a family that hit her, called her stupid, and kept her in a cell-like bedroom. Hall finally got her taste of freedom two years after the family she worked for moved to California, and child services received an anonymous tip about her existence. Child slave: Shyima Hall was sold into slavery by her parents in Egypt when she was just 8-years-old. Now 24, Hall has since gained her freedom and now works as an advocate to spread awareness of child trafficking . Captors: Hall was kept as a slave by wealthy Egyptian couple Abdel Nasser Eid Youssef (left) and his wife Amal Admed Ewis-Abd El Motelib (right) for four years, two of which were spent in Southern California . Now she has written a book, Hidden Girl, shedding more light on her dark years as a servant and how she's bounced back to create a life of her own. 'I want people to know this can happen. Slavery is not in the history book. It's right next to you,' she told People magazine. Hall was one of 11 children born to her parents in the slums south of Alexandria. She says her home life was mostly happy, but her construction-worker father did beat the kids up. Her childhood came to an end the day one of her older sisters was accused of stealing something from the home of her wealthy employers, a man named Abdel Nasser Eid Youssef Ibrahim and his wife Amal Admed Ewis-Abd El Motelib. Used and abused: During her time as a slave, Hall worked 20 hours a day and was only allowed one meal - the family's leftovers from dinner . Hall went with her mother to visit the wealthy couple's house in Cairo and listened as they demanded a younger replacement to make up for the stolen property. Suprisingly, Hall's mother agreed. Hall cried as her mother left and the last thing she said was: 'This is for the good of the family'. Freedom: Hall  gained her freedom two years after the family moved to California and someone sent an anonymous tip about her existence into child services . Hall spent the next two years working for Ibrahim and Motelib who she called 'the Dad' and 'the Mom', caring for the couple's pair of twins three years younger than her and a daughter about the same age. She says the children 'knew what I was and reminded me all the time' while the Dad would smack her with his fist and the Mom would call her 'stupid slave'. The terrible treatment seemed endless for Hall, who would call her mom crying asking when she could come home. 'She'd always say, "You need to pay off your sister's debt"' Two years later, the family relocated to Irvine, California and their abuse got even worse. In Cairo, the family had a staff, but in the smaller California home Hall was the only doing all the work. She got up at 5:30am every day to get the kids ready for school and proceeded to work on the upkeep of the house for the rest of the day, scared the Mom would come home and criticize her cleaning. She never took a break for eating either since she was only allowed one meal a day - whatever was leftover from the family's dinner. As for Hall's part of the house, the family kept her in a room without heat, air-conditioning or lighting with only a bare mattress to sleep on. She had to wash her clothes by hand after she learned the lesson not to use the washing and drying machines. When the Mom discovered her using the dryer one day she screamed, and said: 'Your clothes are never to touch ours. This bucket is what you wash your clothes in, behind the house.' Video Source The Jeff Probst Show . American now: Hall decided not to return to Egypt to live her family, and decided to stay in the U.S. Above, becoming a citizen in 2011 . In addition to her job at the mall, Hall works to spread awareness of child trafficking. On the left, speaking at an awareness event in 2008 . Hall never considered escape out of fear of what would happen if she was found. 'The Mom and the Dad would tell me "If you walk out the cops are going to get you and beat you and you'll never see your family again"' Hall remembers. She got through each day by focusing on seeing her three younger siblings again - it 'was all I thought about'. Her lucky day came in 2002 when someone sent an anonymous tip into child services and a group of police, social workers and immigration officials stormed the house and took her away from her abusers. After years as a slave, Hall's only reaction to her freedom was fear. Ibrahim even had the nerve to order her to conceal her identity from police. Published: Hall has written a book on her experiences as a modern child slave . The last thing he told her in Arabic was: 'Don't tell them you work for us, say you're here for a visit'. Hall contacted her parents soon after being released and instead of being happy to have their daughter back, her father was upset she left the family 'that had put a roof over my head'. Her dad told her to return to Egypt, but this time Hall made her own choice and decided to stay in the U.S. She bounced around foster homes for the next few years and eventually became a U.S. citizen, attended three years of community college and now she works as an assistant manager at a luggage store. In addition to her job, Hall works to spread awareness of human trafficking and hopes to one day become an Immigration and Customs Enforcement Agent. She also has a daughter, Athena, with boyfriend Daniel Eurquidez. 'Holding her up in my arms, I couldn't imagine giving her up - not even to save the world,' Hall said. 'i have my beautiful daughter and my boyfriend. It was a hard road, but I'm 100 per cent okay.' Her father has since died, and she hasn't seen her family since gaining her freedom. But she does hope to one day reconnect with her siblings. Both Ibrahim and Motelib were convicted and sentenced to two to three years in prison. Motelib was deported back to Egypt but her husband may still be living in Southern California.
In 1998 Shyima Hall was sold into slavery by her parents in Egypt to repay a debt .
For the next four years she lived under the control of an abusive wealthy couple, eventually moving with them to California .
Hall was finally freed in 2002 when child services received an anonymous tip on her whereabouts .
The couple that imprisoned her were sentenced to two to three years in prison .
Now 24, Hall is a U.S. citizen with a job, boyfriend, and young daughter of her own .
A 24-year-old new mother calls her life 'heaven' now, but it didn't always used to be that way. In 1998, at just 8-years-old, Shyima Hall was sold into slavery by her parents in Egypt. She spent the next four years working 20 hours days for a family that hit her, called her stupid, and kept her in a cell-like bedroom. Hall finally got her taste of freedom two years after the family she worked for moved to California, and child services received an anonymous tip about her existence. Child slave: Shyima Hall was sold into slavery by her parents in Egypt when she was just 8-years-old. Now 24, Hall has since gained her freedom and now works as an advocate to spread awareness of child trafficking . Captors: Hall was kept as a slave by wealthy Egyptian couple Abdel Nasser Eid Youssef (left) and his wife Amal Admed Ewis-Abd El Motelib (right) for four years, two of which were spent in Southern California . Now she has written a book, Hidden Girl, shedding more light on her dark years as a servant and how she's bounced back to create a life of her own. 'I want people to know this can happen. Slavery is not in the history book. It's right next to you,' she told People magazine. Hall was one of 11 children born to her parents in the slums south of Alexandria. She says her home life was mostly happy, but her construction-worker father did beat the kids up. Her childhood came to an end the day one of her older sisters was accused of stealing something from the home of her wealthy employers, a man named Abdel Nasser Eid Youssef Ibrahim and his wife Amal Admed Ewis-Abd El Motelib. Used and abused: During her time as a slave, Hall worked 20 hours a day and was only allowed one meal - the family's leftovers from dinner . Hall went with her mother to visit the wealthy couple's house in Cairo and listened as they demanded a younger replacement to make up for the stolen property. Suprisingly, Hall's mother agreed. Hall cried as her mother left and the last thing she said was: 'This is for the good of the family'. Freedom: Hall  gained her freedom two years after the family moved to California and someone sent an anonymous tip about her existence into child services . Hall spent the next two years working for Ibrahim and Motelib who she called 'the Dad' and 'the Mom', caring for the couple's pair of twins three years younger than her and a daughter about the same age. She says the children 'knew what I was and reminded me all the time' while the Dad would smack her with his fist and the Mom would call her 'stupid slave'. The terrible treatment seemed endless for Hall, who would call her mom crying asking when she could come home. 'She'd always say, "You need to pay off your sister's debt"' Two years later, the family relocated to Irvine, California and their abuse got even worse. In Cairo, the family had a staff, but in the smaller California home Hall was the only doing all the work. She got up at 5:30am every day to get the kids ready for school and proceeded to work on the upkeep of the house for the rest of the day, scared the Mom would come home and criticize her cleaning. She never took a break for eating either since she was only allowed one meal a day - whatever was leftover from the family's dinner. As for Hall's part of the house, the family kept her in a room without heat, air-conditioning or lighting with only a bare mattress to sleep on. She had to wash her clothes by hand after she learned the lesson not to use the washing and drying machines. When the Mom discovered her using the dryer one day she screamed, and said: 'Your clothes are never to touch ours. This bucket is what you wash your clothes in, behind the house.' Video Source The Jeff Probst Show . American now: Hall decided not to return to Egypt to live her family, and decided to stay in the U.S. Above, becoming a citizen in 2011 . In addition to her job at the mall, Hall works to spread awareness of child trafficking. On the left, speaking at an awareness event in 2008 . Hall never considered escape out of fear of what would happen if she was found. 'The Mom and the Dad would tell me "If you walk out the cops are going to get you and beat you and you'll never see your family again"' Hall remembers. She got through each day by focusing on seeing her three younger siblings again - it 'was all I thought about'. Her lucky day came in 2002 when someone sent an anonymous tip into child services and a group of police, social workers and immigration officials stormed the house and took her away from her abusers. After years as a slave, Hall's only reaction to her freedom was fear. Ibrahim even had the nerve to order her to conceal her identity from police. Published: Hall has written a book on her experiences as a modern child slave . The last thing he told her in Arabic was: 'Don't tell them you work for us, say you're here for a visit'. Hall contacted her parents soon after being released and instead of being happy to have their daughter back, her father was upset she left the family 'that had put a roof over my head'. Her dad told her to return to Egypt, but this time Hall made her own choice and decided to stay in the U.S. She bounced around foster homes for the next few years and eventually became a U.S. citizen, attended three years of community college and now she works as an assistant manager at a luggage store. In addition to her job, Hall works to spread awareness of human trafficking and hopes to one day become an Immigration and Customs Enforcement Agent. She also has a daughter, Athena, with boyfriend Daniel Eurquidez. 'Holding her up in my arms, I couldn't imagine giving her up - not even to save the world,' Hall said. 'i have my beautiful daughter and my boyfriend. It was a hard road, but I'm 100 per cent okay.' Her father has since died, and she hasn't seen her family since gaining her freedom. But she does hope to one day reconnect with her siblings. Both Ibrahim and Motelib were convicted and sentenced to two to three years in prison. Motelib was deported back to Egypt but her husband may still be living in Southern California.
1998, at just 8-years-old, Shyima Hall was sold the next four years working 20 hours days for a services received an anonymous tip about her slavery by her parents in Egypt when she was just 8-years-old. Now 24, Hall has since gained her about her existence into child services . Hall U.S. citizen, attended three years of community daughter, Athena, with boyfriend Daniel convicted and sentenced to two to three years in California.