Sex Trafficking2009
United States US
Timothy Richardson and Robert Hendricks pleaded guilty on Aug. 7 to two counts of human trafficking. Under the plea bargain, Richardson will be sentenced to six years and four months in state prison, and Hendricks will be sentenced to three years. Richardson's attorney, Deputy Public Defender Ross McMahon, declined to comment. Hendricks' attorney, Eben Kurtzman, could not be reached for comment. Sentencing will occur on Aug. 28. The Santa Clara Police Department, the FBI, and Santa Clara County prosecutors worked together on this case. The traffickers were charged under state law, which is unique as typically these cases are tried under federal law rather than state law (enacted in California 3 years previously).
Sex Trafficking2009
United States US
Police had received reports from neighboring businesses, legitimate masseuses, and a local woman about the VIP Spa. It featured Asian women in bikini tops and miniskirts offering full-body rub-downs and a range of sexual services for $100-130. The employees were living at the massage parlor, and it stayed open till 2am. It was noted that local men, aged 40-85, were visiting the spa around the clock. The police set up a bust, but the spa was empty. They arrested two of the "employees." One was charged with prostitution and the other was charged with masturbation for hire. They were taken to jail and released on cash bond the next day.
CSEC2009
United States US
A Forest Road man allegedly took in a 14-year-old runaway, promising her food and a warm place to stay after she disappeared from a group home. Instead, prosecutors said, David Tittensor exploited her by arranging sexual liaisons with other men during two weeks in January. Her ordeal unfolded gradually. She had been living at home, but had run-ins with her parents. She was sent to the Charlton School, a group home for troubled adolescent girls in Saratoga County. She had issues there, too, and fled the school with enough money to buy a one-way bus ticket. She had a vague plan to visit a friend in Schenectady. It was a cold January afternoon when she ended up in the Electric City. She wandered the unfamiliar city streets, looking for the apartment complex where her friend lived. It was starting to get dark. She was getting scared. Jason Stapleton, 29, was drinking at a friend's house and saw her walk past on Van Vranken Avenue, not far from Union College. He called out to her, made small talk, offered her a cigarette and a drink. He said he'd give her a ride to her friend's house. On the way, he said he needed to stop to see Tittensor. At Tittensor's house, the two men got the girl drunk on vodka and beer and high on marijuana in the attic. She passed out. Stapleton then raped the girl when she was unconscious. Stapleton pleaded guilty to first-degree rape in March and agreed to testify against Tittensor. He is serving six years in state prison, according to the New York State Department of Correctional Services web site. The girl said Tittensor seemed nice at first. He gave her a place to stay, took her shopping for clothes, even let her pick out her own towels and toiletries. Tittensor shared the house with a girlfriend and an 8-year-old son during visitations. When his friends came over, he sent her to the unfinished attic. Up there, he kept an old mattress leaned up against a wall. All of the alleged sex acts with the girl took place during the first two weeks of January. The girl had initially been reluctant to identify Tittensor, authorities said. It also took time to track down the men who had sex with her, authorities said. Tittensor and six other men have been charged. The men paid between $40 and $80, according to the criminal complaint filed in City Court.
Sex Trafficking2009
United States US
quote from first online article: "Cook County sheriff's police conducting a sting discovered three women from Thailand who told investigators they had been forced to work as prostitutes in Chicago, New York, San Francisco and Texas in the three weeks they have been in the United States." The second article states that the traffickers were not caught, though the first article states "The (Cook County) sheriff's office is working with federal authorities to investigate the ring."
Forced Criminality2009
Russia RU
“In December 2005, 25 Ukrainian victims were found on a Russian fishing boat in the Sea of Japan. Recruiters lured men, ages 18 to 50, from poor fishing communities on the Black Sea with promises of good pay for work aboard industrial fishing vessels. Once at sea, however, the men were forced at gunpoint to work extremely long days without pay. They were deprived of sleep and physically and psychologically abused. They were deprived of food and water if they refused to work and sometimes consumed crab bait, consisting of raw fish, sea water, and melted ice water to survive. Although the vessel served as a perfect prison, their passports were confiscated. The victims were found and rescued when a Russian Coast Guard crew boarded the vessel to search for illegal poached crabs. They found the victims exhausted and half-starved, locked in the ship’s hold along with three tons of illegally poached crab.”
CSEC2009
United States US
Federal authorities have charged Sean Jarae Hart in an 11-count indictment with sex trafficking of a child for allegedly transporting a young girl across state lines for the purpose of prostitution. Sean Jarae Hart, also known as Hush, was in custody in the Portland area after being arrested in Oregon, Assistant U.S. Attorney Jill Otake said. The Trial took place in Seattle.
Sex Trafficking2009
United States US
A nationwide "Operation Cross Country III" of police and federal agents arrested 35 people in Western Washington as part of a nationwide sweep aimed at curbing the sexual exploitation of children. 48 child prostitutes were rescued; 10 were from Washington State. 571 people were arrested for investigation of state and federal charges involving the domestic trafficking of children for sex.
CSEC2009
United States US
As part of the FBI's "Innocence Lost" inniative, almost 50 juvenile prostitutes, including 10 from Seattle, were rescued during a nationwide crackdown by local and federal authorities on pimps who force children to sell sex for money. The youngest girl rescued in Seattle was 13. Thirty- five adult prostitutes also were arrested in Seattle,as well as two men and one woman suspected of promoting minors in prostitution. The suspects were arrested after supervising girls who met undercover detectives in the 200 block of Sixth Avenue North. No names of those arrested were given in the article. This article also gave information about an arrest made in January of Toda Robinson, 33, who dropped off girls to perform sex acts after the girls, both 15, asked an undercover detective if he was a cop, which he denied. They agreed to perform sex acts for $425. Thus he was arrested with two counts of promoting commercial sexual abuse.
CSEC2009
United States US
Johnson was sentenced to a 21-month prison term, following his plea to one count of promoting prostitution. Clark, whose trial is expected to stretch late into November, remains in King County Jail pending the case's resolution. "He played on everything that I went through," the young woman said, responding to questions from Deputy Prosecutor Christina Miysmasu. "He made me promises that were backed up by promises. I should have known better, because I guess promises are made to be broken. …
Child Labor2009
Zambia ZM
A former Caprivi Chief Regional Officer is facing the wrath of the Zambian law after he was allegedly caught trafficking four children from a remote village in Senanga in Zambia’s western province to Namibia. Raymond Basinka Matiti, 61, who served as a Chief Regional Officer in Katima Mulilo from 2005 to July 2009, was arrested together with Likando Likando, from Zambia, in Senanga in August 2009. It is said the two were caught at a road block along the Senanga – Sesheke road after they had allegedly bundled four children - Memory Kailu, 9, Mushe Likando, 10, Ndala Sinabu, 15 and Nakushowa Ngodo, 20 – in a Toyota Hilux registration number N 50 KM allegedly owned by Matiti. Matiti and Likando are still in police custody after appearing before Magistrate Mukoma of Senanga Magistrate Court who referred the case to the Zambian High Court since the magistrate does not have jurisdiction over the matter.
Sex Trafficking2009
South Korea KR
Trafficker: Mr. Kim (49) Buyers: Mr. Choi (49) and 4 other men 3 brokers who originally convinced the women from Uzbekistan, China, and Thailand, saying that they could make easy money in Korea. Once they arrived in Korea, the trafficker took their passport and locked them in.
Forced Labor2009
Botswana BW
The little I know, I got from this article: http://www.mmegi.bw/index.php?sid=1&aid=1&dir=2007/June/Tuesday12 I really just wanted to get this town put on the map, as the article discusses it as an area adjacent to farms where there is most likely to be occurrence of child labour, that is linked to child trafficking in Botswana.
Child Labor2009
United States US
Raymond Matiti, 61 and Matiti and his co-accused Likando face a possible jail term of 20 years if found guilty of human trafficking. According to the Zambian laws, “human trafficking is an act of recruitment, transporting, harbouring or receipt of persons for the purposes of slavery, forced labour (including bonded labour or debt bondage) and servitude”.
Child Labor2009
Côte d'Ivoire CI
Twenty children were being trafficked into Ivory Coast from Burkina Faso, in 2 cars of ZST transport. They were headed to Meagui, but were stopped at Soubre.
Child Labor2009
South Africa ZA
The trafficker approached a widowed woman with seven children and offered to take two of the children (a boy and a girl) to South Africa so that he could educate them and take care of their needs. The poor and burdened mother agreed and the children were smuggled to Mbuzini, where they were kept for a few weeks before they learnt that they were meant to be killed, for the harvesting of their body parts to be used for ritual purposes.
CSEC2009
United Kingdom GB
human trafficking ring in South Yorkshire . She said a group of young men - who her daughter met through fellow pupils - used threats and violence to control the girl's behaviour for three years.
CSEC2009
United Kingdom GB
Alzbeta Dunkova, aged 26, of Page Hall Road, Grimesthorpe, Sheffield, got 16 years for her part in the plot and her husband Marcel Dunka, 27 and brother Roman Dunka, 34,
CSEC2009
United States US
Three traffickers: Jorge Montano, 24 Sonia Tecuapacho Jorge Aguila-Cuapio, 19 smuggled a 15-year-old teen from Mexico and forced her into prostitution.
CSEC2009
United States US
“A 16-year-old Mexican girl was found to have been trafficked across the US border. Doctors noticed the heavily pregnant girl showed clear signs of physical abuse when she was brought into a hospital in Dayton to give birth. The police were called but the couple who had brought her had already fled. When the girl's story emerged, it became clear she had been kept against her will in the nearby city of Springfield and used for labour and sex.” The hospital contacted Maria Messer, who works with Casa Amiga, to translate for the young girl. Messer discovered that the young girl was an illegal immigrant who was being held against her will by a local couple to have the husband’s child, and most likely sell to a childless couple. Because of the young girl’s injuries, they were planning on inducing her and stealing the child.
Sex Trafficking2009
United States US
From the Register Guard on June 11, 2009 (http://www.registerguard.com/csp/cms/sites/web/news/cityregion/15291266-41/story.csp): A Springfield businessman was sentenced Wednesday to 240 days in jail after pleading guilty to seven felony sex charges relating to his hiring of underage girls as prostitutes. Prasath Boudavong, who owned Far Man restaurant for four years, pleaded guilty to three counts of third-degree rape and five counts of third-degree sodomy for sex acts with girls as young as 14 between November 2007 and April of this year. Beginning about two years ago, she said, Boudavong “repeatedly sought out children to have sexual activity with, and regularly used the same person” to arrange the activity. That person is still under investigation, she said. Eugene police Sgt. Kevin McCarthy said an investigation by the department’s vice detectives showed that Boudavong was just “a prolific customer,” not a pimp. Boudavong, a small man with thinning black hair, answered “yes, sir” or “yes, sir, I did” every time Billings asked him if he committed each of the seven felony charges. His attorney, Brian Barnes, told Billings that his client committed the offenses after becoming involved with other men who were “prostituting young girls.” “They were prostitutes when Mr. Boudavong made their acquaintance,” he said of the girls, none of whom could legally consent to sex because they were under the age of 16. “It doesn’t mitigate the fact that he had sex with them, but he was not involved in any way with their original corruption … though he could be said to have contributed to their further delinquency.” Billings agreed with the latter point, and lamented the fact that the girls probably were victims of “grossly dysfunctional homes,” early exposure to substance, physical or sexual abuse that led them to “victimize themselves by taking advantage of the predations of older men.” “I hope, somehow, they can break that cycle,” the judge said. Oregon Corporation Commission records show that Keo Boudavong replaced Prasath Boudavong as president of the Gateway area Chinese restaurant this week. Prasath Boudavong is no longer an owner, according to Eugene attorney Jill Featherstonhaugh, authorized agent for the business.
CSEC2009
United States US
http://www.oregonlive.com/news/index.ssf/2009/08/springfield_man_accused_of_chi.html
Sex Trafficking2009
United States US
FBI Special Agent Augustus Fennerty and several Eugene police detectives met on April 7th at Springfield's Crossroads Hotel following a call from the 17-year-old victim's mother to discover Milton and the above mentioned girl in a hotel room with another victim. She was 14. Eugene police detective Curtis Newell interviewed the older girl to discover that Milton had been "prostituting out" both girls by telling them how much to charge and what to tell johns when they called. The girls were to charge $250/client, with $100 going to Milton and another $100 going to another pimp involved in the operation. The girls received only $50/client.
Bonded Labor2009
United States US
American Woman married to man from Thailand who own The Silk Elephant import workers from Thailand, keep them in a very small apartment above the restaurant (at least 12 total) and make them work long hours with little pay (paid under the table) in restaurant below. They are baited with the possiblity of green cards and kept as indentured slaves - owing the owner for rent, food, clothing, etc. Eventually they are sent back to Thailand - so said a former employee of the establishment. The same owners own another restaurant in the city with two floors above as well for their employees to live there.
Child Labor2009
Saint Martin MF
Sri Lankan- S. Sivananthan Kittians- Terrance Williams & Sagnella Walwyn Haitian- Ornord Jacquet