Source: United States Department of Justice (Human Trafficking)
PITTSBURGH, Pa. – A resident of Euclid, Ohio, has been sentenced in federal court to 150 months in prison, to be followed by 10 years of supervised release, on his conviction of sex trafficking of a minor and coercion and enticement of an adult for the purpose of commercial sex, Acting United States Attorney Troy Rivetti announced today.
United States District Judge William S. Stickman IV imposed the sentence on Donte Lashawn Cole on August 18, 2025. Cole also is required to comply with the Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act and register as a convicted sex offender.
According to information presented to the Court, Cole transported a female minor from Ohio to a hotel in Monroeville, Pennsylvania, in May of 2023 to engage in commercial sex. Additionally, Cole enticed and coerced an adult female across state lines, also for the purpose of engaging in commercial sex. Cole used online advertisements to market the victims for commercial sex services in Western Pennsylvania and elsewhere from April 2023 to October 2023.
Prior to imposing sentence, Judge Stickman labeled Cole’s conduct as “evil” and noted that Cole “victimized minor girls, crossed state lines, and treated the girls like property for (his) own gain.”
“The United States Attorney’s Office is committed to working with our local, state, and federal partners to stand against human trafficking and the exploitation of children and hold sex traffickers such as Donte Cole accountable,” said Acting United States Attorney Rivetti. “We will remain vigilant in ensuring that anyone seeking to profit through the exploitation of any child or adult is identified, investigated, and brought to justice.”
“Human traffickers such as Donte Cole prey on the vulnerable, inflicting unimaginable suffering and robbing victims of their dignity and freedom,” said Special Agent in Charge of HSI Philadelphia Edward V. Owens. “This case spotlights the depravity of those who exploit others for profit. Homeland Security Investigations will never stop working to ensure these predators are held accountable. We remain relentless in our mission to rescue victims, dismantle trafficking operations, and bring justice to those who have endured such horrific abuse.”
“This predatory trafficker was calculated in how he selected his victims, choosing vulnerable individuals who he then manipulated into situations where their livelihood depended on being at his beck and call,” Pennsylvania Attorney General Dave Sunday said. “Human trafficking is dehumanizing—some of the most egregious conduct we encounter in society. I commend our federal partners for collaborating to reach a resolution that ensures Donte Cole will be far away, for many years, from anyone else he can exploit, manipulate, and abuse.”
Assistant United States Attorney Robert Schupansky and Special Assistant United States Attorney Summer Carroll (Assistant Chief Deputy Attorney General) prosecuted this case on behalf of the government.
Acting United States Attorney Rivetti commended Homeland Security Investigations and the Pennsylvania Office of Attorney General for the investigation leading to the successful prosecution of Cole.
This case was 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 (CEOS), 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.justice.gov/psc.
If you are the victim of human trafficking or may have information about a potential trafficking situation, please call the FBI, local law enforcement, or the National Human Trafficking Resource Center (NHTRC) at 1-888-373-7888. NHTRC is a national, toll-free hotline, with specialists available to answer calls from anywhere in the country, 24 hours a day, seven days a week, every day of the year related to potential trafficking victims, suspicious behaviors, and/or locations where trafficking is suspected to occur. To submit a tip to the NHTRC online, please visit https://humantraffickinghotline.org/report-trafficking.