Category: USDJ Human Trafficking

Source: United States Department of Justice (Human Trafficking)

SIOUX FALLS – January is National Human Trafficking Prevention Month. To commemorate the month, U.S. Attorney Alison J. Ramsdell renewed the U.S. Attorney’s Office’s commitment to bringing traffickers to justice, assisting trafficked victims, and enhancing public awareness through community outreach. 

Human trafficking is a crime involving the exploitation of a person for labor, services, or commercial sex, through the use of force, fraud, or coercion that is physical and/or psychological. The exploitation of a minor for commercial sex is human trafficking regardless of whether any form of force, fraud, or coercion is used by the trafficker.

“Human trafficking does not adhere to social or educational boundaries—it can happen to anyone,” said U.S. Attorney Ramsdell. “That’s why my office is committed to working alongside our partners in law enforcement to prevent human trafficking and to bring offenders to justice.”

To enhance awareness and educate the community about human trafficking, the U.S. Attorney’s Office has released a public service announcement, available here, about how to identify potential trafficking situations and where to report suspected trafficking activity.

Recent Human Trafficking Prosecutions

In the last year alone, the U.S. Attorney’s Office’s anti-trafficking efforts resulted in notable prosecutions that have led to federal charges, convictions, and prison sentences against individual traffickers:

United States v. Daniel Kubica: On March 23, 2023, Daniel Kubica, 39, of Chicago, Illinois, was charged with multiple federal offenses relating to sex trafficking of women in the Black Hills and elsewhere. Kubica is charged with sex trafficking by force, fraud, or coercion; benefitting from sex trafficking; and using a facility of interstate commerce in aid of a racketeering enterprise. Between August 31, 2022, and September 29, 2022, Kubica facilitated an illegal commercial sex operation, through which at least three females in the Black Hills area, and other women in the United States, engaged in commercial sexual activity through Kubica’s use of force, threats, and coercion. Kubica is currently scheduled for a federal jury trial on March 26, 2024.

United States v. Gordon Weston: On January 10, 2024, a federal jury in Rapid City, South Dakota, convicted Gordon Weston, 57, of Oglala, South Dakota, of Enticement of a Minor Using the Internet and Commercial Sex Trafficking. Weston was indicted by a federal grand jury in September of 2021. Weston was employed as the Activities Coordinator at the Emergency Youth Shelter in Pine Ridge, South Dakota, from 2009 to 2021. Weston commonly requested juvenile females who stayed at the shelter to be “friends” with him on Facebook after they had left the shelter. Weston contacted at least one juvenile female and offered her money and transportation in exchange for sexual encounters with him. Weston is awaiting sentencing.

United States v. John Ray Heath: In March of 2023, John Ray Heath, 52, of Rapid City, South Dakota, was indicted for using the internet to attempt to sexually exploit a minor. The charge related to Heath attempting to meet an individual he believed to be a 14-year-old female for sex. The individual was actually an undercover law enforcement officer engaged in proactive policing of sex offenders. During the investigation, the law enforcement officer discovered that Heath was sex trafficking a minor and sexually exploiting multiple other females in the Rapid City area. Heath was thereafter indicted for sex trafficking by force, fraud, or coercion; sexual exploitation of a minor; enticement of a minor using the internet, and other federal sex offenses. Heath pleaded guilty to sex trafficking a minor and sexual exploitation of a minor and is scheduled for sentencing on March 1, 2024.

United States v. Odarie Massiah: On August 2, 2023, Odarie Massiah, 33, of Sioux Falls, South Dakota, was charged with Commercial Sex Trafficking of an adult female by force, threats of force, fraud and coercion between July 1, 2020, and August 8, 2022. The defendant is alleged to have benefited financially from the commercial sex acts in which he caused his adult victim to engage. He is scheduled for trial on February 20, 2024.

United States v. Richard Alan Kucera & Ivy Rose Heron: On November 1, 2023, Richard Alan Kucera, 65, and Ivy Rose Heron, 35, both of Winner, South Dakota, were charged with three counts of Sex Trafficking of Minors between April 3, 2019, and July 31, 2021. Kucera was also charged with three additional counts of Producing Child Pornography. Both defendants are scheduled for trial on March 19, 2024.

United States v. Sheyenne Rodriguez: On August 17, 2023, Sheyenne Rodriguez, 41, of Wakpala, South Dakota, was indicted for sex trafficking of a child and transportation of a minor with intent to engage in criminal sexual activity. In March of 2021, Rodriguez is alleged to have recruited, enticed, harbored, transported, and provided a minor to engage in a commercial sex act in the District of South Dakota and elsewhere. Rodriguez is currently scheduled for a federal jury trial on June 4, 2024.

United States v. Zeng Quiang Yang: On May 3, 2022, Zeng Quiang Yang, 46, of Nesquehoning, Pennsylvania, was charged with Unlawful Employment of Aliens. He pleaded guilty to the charge. Between January of 2019 and May of 2020, Yang was the manager of a restaurant in Huron, South Dakota. During that time frame, Yang knowingly employed unauthorized aliens. On December 11, 2023, he was sentenced to one year of probation.

United States v. William Godoy: On December 6, 2022, a superseding indictment was filed, charging William Godoy, 33, of Guatemala, with Illegal Reentry After Deportation; two counts of Trafficking with Respect to Slavery; two counts of Harboring/Concealing Illegal Aliens; and two counts of Encouraging or Inducing an Alien to come to, enter, or reside in the US. Godoy is scheduled for trial on February 13, 2024.

Online Sex Trafficking Operations: In collaboration with several law enforcement partners, there were two joint online sex-trafficking operations in 2023, as part of Project Safe Childhood. The undercover sex trafficking operations target internet predators and illustrate proactive efforts by law enforcement to apprehend would-be exploiters. Via electronic devices and social apps, the perpetrators typically negotiate a time and place to meet the minor to engage in unlawful sex acts. When they arrive at the pre-determined location to meet the minor, they are instead met by law enforcement agents and placed under arrest.

The first operation ran from March 3, 2023, through March 8, 2023, and resulted in the arrest and indictment of six men from Sioux Falls, South Dakota. All six men were charged with Attempted Enticement of a Minor Using the Internet. The second sting operation ran August 4, 2023, through August 10, 2023, during the Sturgis Motorcycle Rally. As a result of this operation, four Rapid City, South Dakota, men and one Box Elder, South Dakota, man were arrested. Four were charged with Attempted Enticement of a Minor Using the Internet and one was charged with Attempted Sexual Exploitation of a Minor

If you believe you are the victim of human trafficking or have information about a potential trafficking situation, call the National Human Trafficking Hotline at 1-888-373-7888 or send a text to 233733. You can also submit a tip online, through the FBI Field Office at 1-800-CALL-FBI, or through your local law enforcement agency.   

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Source: United States Department of Justice (Human Trafficking)

CHARLOTTE, N.C. – As National Human Trafficking Prevention Month draws to a close, U.S. Attorney Dena J. King continues to highlight the importance of education and outreach in the prevention, identification, and disruption of human trafficking activity, and commends community organizations for their partnership and provision of trauma-informed services to trafficking victims and survivors.

“We simply cannot, and will not, live in a society where human trafficking is allowed to happen,” said U.S. Attorney King this morning during a human trafficking awareness event hosted by Present Age Ministries, an organization dedicated to the prevention of the sex trafficking of minors. Present Age Ministries is also a member of the Charlotte Metro Human Trafficking Task Force, a coalition of law enforcement, prosecutors, and service providers committed to supporting survivors and eliminating the crime of human trafficking through prevention and intervention strategies.

“It is important to bring this sinister crime out of the shadows – where it thrives – and into the forefront – where it belongs – where we can learn about it, understand it, and educate others, so together we can fight against it,” U.S. Attorney King expressed in her remarks, and noted her Office’s renewed commitment to eradicating human trafficking by partnering with law enforcement agencies and the community to bring traffickers to justice, protect victims, and empower survivors.

To further those efforts, the U.S. Attorney’s Office has a team of experienced prosecutors and personnel that handle human trafficking cases. A federal prosecutor also serves as the Western District’s Human Trafficking Coordinator, and works closely with the Office’s Victim Witness Assistance Unit to ensure that the rights and needs of trafficking victims remain central throughout the investigation and prosecution of each case. The Victim Witness Assistance Unit also partners with the Charlotte Metro Human Trafficking Task Force and other non-governmental organizations and service providers to ensure that appropriate trauma-informed care and resources are made available to rescued trafficking victims and survivors.

“Brokering relationships and building strategic partnerships at the local, state, and federal level is vital to creating a network of resources that can provide holistic support to victims of human trafficking,” said U.S. Attorney King. “I want to thank all the partner agencies, public and private, for their dedication to eradicating human trafficking and for sharing their resources, insights, and understanding of victim-centered care. Their work helps us better-serve victims and bring traffickers to justice.”

The U.S. Attorney’s Office is also committed to raising awareness by educating the public on how to identify signs of human trafficking and where to report suspected trafficking activity.

While there are no defining characteristics of a human trafficking situation, recognizing the signs, or indicators, is the first step in identifying this crime. The presence of one or more of the red flags below may signal a human trafficking situation that should be reported:

• Limited freedom – trafficking victims may have security measures in their work and/or living locations, their movements are monitored, or they are not free to come and go as they please.
• Lack of control – trafficking victims may have few or no personal possessions, are not in control of their money, owe a suspiciously large debt to an employer and are unable to pay it off, do not possess their identification documents and personal records, appear fearful, are unable or unwilling to communicate freely, and when they do, their answers seems scripted or rehearsed.
• Suspicious/Unsafe working conditions – trafficking victims may work excessively long hours with no breaks and under poor conditions, show signs of physical abuse, appear deprived of food, water, sleep, or medical care, and are under 18-years-old and engaged in commercial sex.

If you encounter a potential trafficking situation and can communicate with a suspected victim without jeopardizing the victim’s safety, the following questions may assist in determining if someone is in a trafficking situation:

• Has someone hurt you/do you need help?
• Are you safe/scared?
• Where do you sleep and eat?
• Are you able to come and go as you please?
• Have you been hurt or threatened with violence if you attempted to leave?
• Has the safety of your family been threatened?
• Do you live with your employer?
• Can you leave the job if you want to?
• Do you owe a debt to your employer?
• Do you have your passport/identification? If not, who has it?

If you believe you are the victim of human trafficking or have information about a potential trafficking situation, call the National Human Trafficking Hotline at 1-888-373-7888. Specialists are available to answer calls 24 hours a day, seven days a week. You can also send a text to 233733 or submit a tip online. You can also contact the Charlotte Office of the FBI at 704-672-6100, or your local law enforcement agency.

To further enhance awareness and educate the community about human trafficking, the U.S. Attorney’s Office also has released a Public Service Announcement on how to identify potential trafficking situations and where to report suspected human trafficking activity.

Source: United States Department of Justice (Human Trafficking)

PHOENIX, Ariz. – Maria Mendoza-Mendoza, aka “La Guera,” 51, of Honduras, pleaded guilty yesterday to Conspiracy to Transport Illegal Aliens for Profit. The sentencing hearing is scheduled for April 2, 2024, before United States District Judge Raner C. Collins.

Mendoza-Mendoza admitted that she was a leader of a smuggling organization that smuggled over 100 migrants from Honduras into the United States, and that, as a leader, she coordinated alien smuggling and money laundering events. Mendoza-Mendoza admitted she told a co-conspirator she would “bleed out” a guide as punishment and that she stated that a migrant whose family did not pay his fee would be thrown “back in the desert.” She also admitted that the smuggling organization used firearms and that the smuggling involved dangerous risks to the migrants. The government of Honduras extradited Mendoza-Mendoza to the United States in June 2023 to face these charges.   

A conviction for Conspiracy to Transport Illegal Aliens for Profit carries a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison.

This prosecution resulted from the coordinated efforts of Joint Task Force Alpha (JTFA). The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Arizona is part of JTFA, which was established by Attorney General Merrick B. Garland in June 2021 to marshal the investigative and prosecutorial resources of the Department of Justice, in partnership with the Department of Homeland Security, to enhance U.S. enforcement efforts against the most prolific and dangerous human smuggling and trafficking groups operating in Mexico, Guatemala, El Salvador, and Honduras. The Task Force focuses on disrupting and dismantling smuggling and trafficking networks that abuse, exploit, or endanger migrants, pose national security threats, and are involved in organized crime.

Homeland Security Investigations-Sells office conducted the investigation in this case. The United States Attorney’s Office, District of Arizona, Tucson, handled the prosecution.
 

CASE NUMBER:           CR-18-00078-RCC-MAA
RELEASE NUMBER:    2024-008_Mendoza-Mendoza

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For more information on the U.S. Attorney’s Office, District of Arizona, visit http://www.justice.gov/usao/az/
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