Source: Office of United States Attorneys
COLUMBIA, S.C. — Monesha Tatayana Lapri Gary, 24, of Clinton, and Rebecca Melanie Perry, 30, of Columbia, have pleaded guilty to human trafficking conspiracy in federal court in Columbia.
According to evidence presented in court, from at least December 2022 through August 2023, Gary and Perry worked together with co-defendants Antonio Marquis Nicholson and Terrell Counts to exploit three minors in the commercial sex trade, despite several members of the conspiracy knowing they were minors.
Nicholson and Perry recruited one minor victim when they encountered her at a hotel as a runaway. They drove her across state lines, told her that she was going to work in commercial sex, bought her lingerie, took photos of her, advertised her for commercial sex on the internet, and arranged for customers to exploit her at hotels in the Columbia area and elsewhere in the state. Nicholson set prices, collected proceeds, decided which minor victims would receive some portion of the proceeds, and how much they would receive. Gary chatted with customers as if she was a minor victim, transported a minor to another city to be exploited, collected proceeds, and turned them over to Nicholson, and intervened with customers when problems arose, all while the minor was multiple states away from her family. Perry helped in a similar way.
Two additional minor victims were recruited near a high school, and they were exploited on days they were not in school. Members of the conspiracy used the internet to advertise the minors, communicate with customers, arrange encounters, and collect proceeds.
The conspiracy exercised high levels of control over the operation, one minor victim was subjected to physical assault, and several of the members of the conspiracy carried firearms and distributed drugs around the minor victims.
Gary and Perry face a penalty of up to life in prison. They also face a fine of up to $250,000 and lifetime supervision to follow a term of imprisonment and mandatory sex offender registry requirements. Pursuant to a plea agreement, Gary and Perry agreed to pay restitution to the victims.
United States District Judge Sherri A. Lydon accepted the guilty plea and will sentence Gary and Perry after receiving and reviewing a sentencing report prepared by the U.S. Probation Office.
The indictment remains pending against Nicholson and Counts. Charges in an indictment are merely accusations and defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results.
The case was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division (SLED), and the South Carolina Attorney General’s Office, with assistance from the Columbia Police Department, Richland County Sheriff’s Department, West Columbia Police Department, Darlington County Sheriff’s Office, Spartanburg County Sheriff’s Office, Horry County Sheriff’s Office, Myrtle Beach Police Department, and Jefferson County (Alabama) Sheriff’s Office. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Elliott B. Daniels and Ariyana N. Gore are prosecuting the case.
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