Orlando Woman Pleads Guilty to Conspiracy to Engage in Sex Trafficking of Minors

TAMPA—United States Attorney Robert E. O’Neill announces that Pria M. Gunn (20, Orlando) today pleaded guilty to conspiracy to engage in sex trafficking of minors. Gunn faces a maximum penalty of life in federal prison.

According to the plea agreement, while working as a prostitute for Weylin O. Rodriguez, Gunn assisted Rodriguez by enforcing Rodriguez’s rules on the other prostitutes, many of whom were minors. Gunn assisted Rodriguez by posting prostitution ads of the victims on the Internet and by renting hotel rooms where prostitution activities occurred. Gunn often acted as the enforcer of the organization, by inflicting physical violence on the victims, to ensure that the girls who did not wish to prostitute themselves did not run away.

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Stacie B. Harris.

It is another case brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc. For more information about Internet safety education, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc and click on the tab “Resources.”

Ohio Man Sentenced to 30 Years in Prison for Sex Trafficking of a Minor

CLEVELAND—Anthony C. Willoughby was sentenced today to 30 years in prison after a jury previously found him guilty of forcing a 16-year-old girl to engage in commercial sex acts, announced Steven M. Dettelbach, U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Ohio, and Stephen D. Anthony, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Cleveland Office.

“The details of this case underscore why it is so important that we continue to work collaboratively and try to eradicate this modern-day slavery,” said U.S. Attorney Dettelbach. “This defendant preyed upon a weak, vulnerable victim and used her suffering as an opportunity for profit.”

Special Agent in Charge Anthony said, “This case is one of the first human trafficking cases to go to trial in Northern Ohio. Investigating and prosecuting those involved in the sexual exploitation of the most vulnerable of victims is a priority of the FBI. The 30-year sentence imposed today represents the seriousness of the offense and should serve as a deterrent to child predators.”

Willoughby, 39, also known as “P.T.” and “Party Time,” last lived in Toledo, Ohio, according to court records.

A jury on December 16, 2011, found Willoughby guilty on one count of sex trafficking of a minor. Willoughby recruited, enticed, harbored, and transported a juvenile, identified in the indictment as “S.W.,” knowing that by means of force, fraud, and coercion the juvenile was caused to engage in a commercial sex act between February 15, 2009, and March 19, 2009, according to court records.

The victim in this case was 16 at the time of the crime. She had run away from foster care in the winter of 2009 when Willoughby, then 36, agreed to take her in, according to court documents. Willoughby convinced the victim they were in a relationship but then began arranging for “dates” for her from his client list, according to court records.

This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys James V. Moroney and Ava Rotell Dustin, following an investigation by the Toledo Resident Agency of the Cleveland FBI and the Northwest Ohio Violent Crimes Against Children Task Force (NWOVCACTF).

The NWOVCACTF, directed by the FBI Toledo Resident Agency, includes special agents of the FBI and agents and officers from the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Identification and Investigation; Ohio Highway Patrol; Toledo Police Department; Lima, Ohio Police Department; Perrysburg Township, Ohio Police Department; Fulton County, Ohio Sheriff’s Office; and the Ottawa County, Ohio Sheriff’s Office.

Another Lands in Federal Prison in Alien Harboring Case

HOUSTON—The last person to plead guilty in a 10-defendant indictment has been sentenced to federal prison for his role in an organization involved in the trafficking of Mexican females for compelled service at Houston area bars and restaurants through force, fraud, and coercion, United States Attorney Kenneth Magidson announced today. Javier Belmontes, 48, entered a guilty plea on March 19, 2012, for conspiring to harbor Mexican nationals.

Today, U.S. District Judge Lynn Hughes handed Belmontes a 48-month prison term, which will be followed by three years of supervised release. Judge Hughes also forfeited two bars, one restaurant, and several properties that the court found were used to facilitate these crimes. The government has requested the proceeds from these forfeitures be used to aid the victims in this case.

Belmontes was charged along with nine others in a conspiracy involving the recruitment of Mexican women and girls to travel to the United States with the false expectation of legitimate jobs in bars and restaurants. The indictment, returned February 15, 2011, alleged that the conspirators further relied on the services of pimps to supply the women for use as prostitutes to maintain control of the women.

Maria Rojas, aka “Nancy,” 47, was the owner of La Costenita, formerly Playa Sola, as well as El Club Restaurante, formerly La Cueva Restaurante Bar, both located on Clinton Drive in Houston. Belmontes owned, controlled and operated La Costenita and El Club Restaurante, while Jose Luis Rojas, 39, operated La Costenita. Seven others were charged in the indictment with conspiracy to harbor illegal aliens. Maday Martinez, 35, and Evelin Carolina Aguera, 39, worked as managers, while Claudia Perez Ramirez, 28; Silvano Santos, aka “Chivas,” 33; Francisco Maradiaga Jimenez, aka “Pancho,” 35; and Olvan Ramirez Caceres, 27, worked at La Costenita as lookouts alerting police presence. The final defendant, Aleyda Juarez, 29, passed out condoms and charged the females $15 for the condom as well as use of the rooms.

Aguera, Santos, Perez Ramirez, Maradiaga Jimenez, Ramirez Caceres, and Juarez have pleaded guilty and have been sentenced. Their sentences for their roles in conspiracy to harboring illegal aliens has ranged from eight to 11 months, and all will be deported upon completion of their sentences. Martinez has also pleaded guilty and is awaiting sentencing.

On November 28, 2011, Maria Rojas and Jose Luis Rojas pleaded guilty to conspiracy to harbor illegal aliens as well as conspiracy to commit sex trafficking. They were later sentenced to 16 years for conspiracy to commit sex trafficking in addition to 10 years for conspiracy to harbor illegal aliens, to run concurrently. Maria Rojas also pleaded guilty to illegal re-entry after deportation and received an additional 24 months to be served concurrently to her other sentences.

The investigation leading to the filing of criminal charges was the result of a three-year investigation conducted by members of the Human Trafficking Rescue Alliance (HTRA) in Houston, which includes the FBI, Homeland Security Investigations, Harris County Sheriff’s Office, Texas Alcoholic and Beverage Commission, Texas Attorney General’s Office, Department of State, Texas Department of Public Safety, and the Houston Police Department. The HTRA was formed by the United States Attorney’s Office in Houston as part of a broader effort by the Department of Justice to concentrate and combine resources of our own office’s civil rights and organized crime units as well as federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies and non-governmental service organizations to target human traffickers while providing necessary services to those victimized by the traffickers. The Houston HTRA was one of the first of 42 such funded organizations and the first of its kind in Texas. The mission of the HTRA is to foster the collaboration of local, state, and federal law enforcement agencies with area social service organizations to identify and assist the victims of human trafficking and to effectively identify, apprehend, and prosecute those engaged in trafficking offenses.

Assistant United States Attorneys Ruben R. Perez and Joe Magliolo prosecuted the case, while Katherine Haden handled the asset forfeiture matter.

Washington Juveniles Recovered in Operation Cross Country VI

This week, three Innocence Lost Task Forces (ILTFs) in Washington state recovered juveniles and young adults being victimized through prostitution. Some of the adult victims had been forced into engaging in prostitution since they were juveniles. The local operations were part of Operation Cross Country VI, a three-day national enforcement action that is part of the Innocence Lost National Initiative. Details on the national actions are in the attached FBI Headquarters press release.

In Washington state, the ILTFs recovered six juveniles and arrested seven subjects suspected of promoting commercial sexual abuse of a minor. Operations took place June 21-23, 2012, in Auburn, Bellevue, Lakewood, Seattle, Tacoma, and throughout King County. Victims and the pimps travel throughout western Washington to work and do not necessarily reside in the area where they were located this week.

The ILTF, working together with partnering agencies, made contact with young women involved in prostitution through the use of undercover agents and detectives and by canvassing areas where street prostitution is known to occur.

All the women and girls were offered to be connected with a variety of services within the community, such as job training, housing, counseling, and medical and education assistance.

The FBI Seattle Division works with law enforcement partners on three dedicated Innocence Lost Task Forces, based in Seattle, Everett, and Tacoma.

■The Seattle ILTF is a partnership between the FBI; the King County Sheriff’s Office; the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations (ICE-HSI) directorate; and the Seattle, Kent, SeaTac, Port of Seattle, and Bellevue police departments.

■The Everett ILTF is a partnership between the FBI; the Snohomish County Sheriff’s Office; and the Everett, Lynnwood, and Mt. Vernon police departments.

■The Tacoma-based Pacific Northwest ILTF is a partnership between the FBI, the Tacoma and Lakewood Police Departments, the Internal Revenue Service, and ICE-HSI.

Additional partners supplemented the work of Washington ILTF members in Operation Cross Country VI. They were personnel from the Bureau of Prisons and the Auburn, Bellingham, and Ferndale Police Departments.

ILTFs provide a rapid and effective investigative response to reported federal crimes involving the victimization of children. The task force strives to reduce the vulnerability of children to acts of sexual exploitation and abuse and strengthens the capabilities of federal, state, and local law enforcement through training programs and investigative assistance. Below are summaries of recent cases investigated by the Washington ILTFs:

■Ronnie Tramble coerced or forced more than five different women to work for him as prostitutes. Some of these victims were under the age of 18. Tramble first came to the attention of Kent Police Department officers when a juvenile female told them that Tramble beat and coerced her and advertised her as a prostitute on Backpage.com. On March 16, 2012, Tramble was sentenced in U.S. District Court to 15 years in prison and 15 years of supervised release. He was also ordered to pay restitution to the five women he forced to work as prostitutes.

■D’Marco Mobley used beatings and sexual violence to force a teenager and two young women into prostitution. His violence included locking one of the women in the trunk of a car for 28 hours and subjecting her to multiple rapes during that period. On April 27, 2012, Mobley was sentenced in King County Superior Court to 37 years in prison.

■The conviction of DeShawn Cashmoney Clark marked the first under Washington state’s Human Trafficking Statute. Clark was a member of the Westside Street Mobb, a violent street gang that recruited and forced teenage girls and young women into prostitution for the gang’s financial profit. On January 22, 2010, DeShawn Clark was sentenced in King County Superior Court to 17 years in prison.

Operation Cross Country VI

FBI, Partners Provide Compassion and Assistance to Child Victims

The FBI’s Operation Cross Country enforcement actions in recent years have highlighted the issue of commercial sexual exploitation of children. Contrary to what many people once thought, this is not just a problem involving young adults being moved from foreign countries into the U.S. It is a crisis that starts at home and can target any child of any social, economic, or racial background in our cities, suburbs, and rural areas.

At the heart of Operation Cross Country is a desire by the FBI’s employees and their partners on the Innocence Lost Task Forces to rescue these children from a life of violence and exploitation.

“There is no child—under any circumstance—who deserves to be sold for sex. Ever. My primary mission is to make sure that each child we recover is connected to supportive services that can address their emotional and physical well-being,” says Caroline Holmes, FBI Portland’s victim specialist. “They deserve the chance to be kids—to have dreams and aspirations and to be safe.”

The FBI’s Portland Division works with a host of social service providers to answer the need. Working together, they provide these children—and their families, when appropriate—with emergency assistance, counseling, health resources, and referrals to outside providers. Immediate life and safety needs come first with the end goal of providing the victim access to long-term resources to ensure long-term success.

Since the Operation Cross Country law enforcement actions began in 2009, the local social service providers in the Portland area have banded together in what is a model program for responding to the child victims of commercial sex exploitation. For instance, Multnomah County has set up a special unit within its Department of Human Services to address the issue. In addition, the county has generated a peer-to-peer sharing forum where advocates can collaborate and develop the most effective response tools.

Another example: the Sexual Assault Resource Center (SARC) of Oregon is responding to the crisis with specially trained and dedicated advocates who work specifically with children who have been exploited. SARC advocates provide immediate intervention, affording confidential advocacy and case management to exploited boys and girls in the Portland metro area.

In 2011, Janus Youth Program opened the area’s first shelter, Athena’s House, specifically for commercially exploited children. Athena’s House is one of only a few shelters nationwide that works solely with this population.

“These are our kids,” says Victim Specialist Holmes. “They deserve our attention, our help, and our compassion. We do everything that we can for them.”

If you suspect that a child is being sexually exploited, please call your nearest FBI office or local law enforcement agency immediately.

Ft. Lauderdale Man Arrested on Charges of Sex Trafficking of Minors

Wifredo A. Ferrer, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida; John V. Gillies, Special Agent in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Miami Field Office; and Franklin C. Adderly, Chief of Police, Ft. Lauderdale Police Department, announced that Van Lawson Williams, 49, of Ft. Lauderdale, was arrested on charges of sex trafficking of minors, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1591(a)(1). Williams made his initial appearance today in federal court in Ft. Lauderdale before U.S. Magistrate Judge Barry S. Seltzer and will have a bond hearing on May 24, 2012 at 11:00 a.m. before U.S. Magistrate Judge Lurana S. Snow.

According to the affidavit filed in support of the criminal complaint, Williams met minor females, many of them runaways, in his neighborhood and invited them to stay with him at his Ft. Lauderdale residence, promising them food and shelter. Williams would then convince the girls to work as prostitutes. Williams would allegedly charge the prostitution customers a fee for “renting” one of his bedrooms and would collect all the money the customers paid to have sex with the minor females. The complaint also alleges that Williams provided the girls with illegal narcotics, including marijuana, cocaine, and ecstasy.

Mr. Ferrer commended the investigative efforts of the FBI, the FBI-led Minor Vice Task Force, and the Ft. Lauderdale Police Department. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Corey Steinberg and Scott Behnke.

A complaint is only an accusation and a defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty.