22-Year-Old Man Convicted of Sex Trafficking

March 26, 2018 06:04 PM

A 22-year-old man has been convicted of two counts of sex trafficking, the Hennepin County Attorney's Office announced Monday.

According to a release, Lee Edward Smith Jr. was found guilty by a jury Friday and sentenced to terms of nine and 20 years, to be served concurrently.

The criminal complaint stated a Minneapolis police investigator came across a woman being advertised for sex in August of last year on Backpage.com. After calling that number, the investigator was allegedly directed to go to the 3600 block of Nicollet Avenue.

The investigator then reportedly set up in a place where he could survey the building and contacted the phone number. He said he saw a woman come out of the building, and when she didn't see anyone, she texted the investigator and admitted she was the woman he was seeking.

Read more from KSTP ABC5 Eyewitness News

Greensboro Men Charged With Human Trafficking In Myrtle beach

MYRTLE BEACH, S.C. — Two Greensboro men were arrested early Friday morning on human trafficking charges in Myrtle Beach, according to Myrtle Beach Online.

Willie Columbus Lacy, 26, and David Davell Ward, 24, were charged with trafficking in persons, recruiting, enticing, and simple possession of marijuana.

Read more from Fox8 Myrtle

Human Trafficking Fugitive On Ice's Top 10 List Extradited To Us From Mexico

NEW YORK — One of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) 10 most wanted human trafficking fugitives was extradited Friday to face criminal charges for sex trafficking. This is subsequent to an initial arrest Sept. 2016 in Mexico, following a joint investigation between ICE’s Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Mexico City, HSI New York and the Mexican Federal Police.

ICE reports.

Prostitution Boss And Mother Convicted In Columbia Of Multi-State Sex Trafficking

The Matthew J. Perry Federal Courthouse in Columbia Tracy Glantz tglantz@thestate.com


COLUMBIA, SC

A Gastonia, N.C., man was convicted in federal court in Columbia Friday on eight counts including sex trafficking, child pornography and illegal firearms.

Samuel Pratt, 34, who was arrested in Columbia, ran a sex trafficking business that operated in South Carolina, North Carolina and New York, prosecutors said.

His mother, Daphne Pratt, earlier pleaded guilty to conspiracy to sex traffic children in the case, said U.S. Attorney Beth Drake in a news release.

During the four-day trial, witnesses testified about the manipulation and abuse involved in sex trafficking operations at work in the Carolinas that included children as young as 14 years old, Drake said.

Read more from The State.com Columbia South Carolina

 

Read more here: http://www.thestate.com/news/local/crime/article120025018.html#storylink=cpy

Read more here: http://www.thestate.com/news/local/crime/article120025018.html#storylink=cpy

St. Paul Man Sentenced to 20 Years on Sex Trafficking Charge

October 31, 2016 11:11 AM

A St. Paul man has been sentenced to 20 years in prison for prostituting a teenage girl.

Forty-one-year-old Damon DiMartino was sentenced Friday on a first-degree sex trafficking charge.

According to the criminal complaint, police responded to a domestic disturbance call last fall and later learned that the person who made the complaint was a 17-year-old who was being prostituted. The girl told police that she had been kicked out of her mother’s home in June and had been living with friends.

Read more from St Paul Eyewitness News