Source: Office of United States Attorneys
Defendant allegedly trafficked victim while on probation for stabbing a female multiple times in the abdomen and thigh
BOSTON – A 29-year-old Boston woman has been charged with allegedly trafficking a 15-year-old minor who had previously been reported missing.
Shakera Pina, a/k/a “Stacks,” 29, is charged in a criminal complaint with one count of sex trafficking of a minor. She is currently in state custody on related charges and will appear in federal court in Boston at a later date.
According to court filings, on April 7, 2025, law enforcement encountered online postings advertising commercial sex with a 15-year-old minor female who had previously been reported as missing. On April 9, 2025, as part of a sting operation, law enforcement responded to the online advertisement in an undercover capacity posing as a purported sex buyer in an attempt to recover the minor. In subsequent correspondence, the responding individual who posted the advertisements agreed to meet the purported sex buyer at a hotel later that night for a commercial sex date with the minor victim.
There, law enforcement recovered a different 15-year-old victim. It is alleged that text messages on that minor victim’s phone showed Pina instructing the minor victim on how to interact with sex buyers and what to do with the proceeds from the commercial sex. Pina was allegedly located in the parking lot where the sting operation was occurring, waiting inside her vehicle.
It is alleged that when officers approached Pina with flashing emergency lights, Pina immediately put her car into drive and attempted to flee. Officers then approached the car on foot, identified themselves as law enforcement officers and demanded Pina open the door. It is alleged that Pina refused, and was observed manipulating her cell phone, allegedly in an apparent attempt to delete evidence. Officers then broke the driver’s side window of Pina’s vehicle and, as she was being placed on the ground, Pina allegedly threw the two cell phones that were in her possession. At the time of the alleged offense, Pina was on probation for stabbing a female victim multiple times in the abdomen and right thigh in December 2022.
Government filings allege that the minor victim originally depicted in the advertisement was subsequently recovered and disclosed that that Pina also trafficked her during the same time period, requiring her to engage in commercial sex and provide Pina with the proceeds.
If you or someone you know may be impacted or experiencing commercial sex trafficking or child exploitation, please contact USAMA.VictimAssistance@usdoj.gov.
The charge of sex trafficking of a minor provides for a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years and up to life in prison, at least five years of supervised release and a fine of up to $250,000. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and statutes which govern the determination of a sentence in a criminal case.
United States Attorney Leah B. Foley; Kimberly Milka, Acting Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston Division; and Boston Police Commissioner Michael Cox made the announcement today. Valuable assistance was provided by the Massachusetts State Police and the Suffolk County District Attorney’s Office. Assistant U.S. Attorney Elizabeth Riley, Chief of the Human Trafficking & Civil Rights Unit, is prosecuting the case.
The details contained in the charging documents are allegations. The defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.