Category: USDJ Human Trafficking

Source: United States Department of Justice (Human Trafficking)

BOSTON – This week, a federal judge in Boston ordered restitution in the amount of $1,510,300 to be paid to the survivors victimized by Jermall Anderson who sex trafficked seven women over the span of four years.

On March 12, 2025, Anderson, 45, of Tewksbury, Mass. was sentenced to 15 years in prison for sex trafficking women throughout New England, New York and New Jersey. In November 2024, Anderson pleaded guilty to seven counts of sex trafficking by force, fraud and coercion; one count of coercion and enticement; and one count of interstate transportation for the purpose of prostitution. He was indicted in August 2023 along with two co-conspirators.

In today’s order, the Court awarded the following restitution amounts directly payable to each of the seven separate survivors, based upon their testimony and other information regarding Anderson’s sex trafficking operation:

• Survivor 1: $508,000
• Survivor 2: $40,000
• Survivor 3: $91,300
• Survivor 4: $252,000
• Survivor 5: $264,000
• Survivor 6: $10,000
• Survivor 7: $345,000

From 2012 through 2016, Anderson, along with his co-conspirators, used physical violence, threats and the giving and withholding of heroin and cocaine to force seven different women to prostitute on their behalf. Anderson and his co-conspirators targeted vulnerable victims, specifically those struggling from drug addiction, homelessness and lack of economic resources. Anderson recruited women struggling with drug addiction directly from detox and drug rehabilitation facilities and forced and coerced them into providing commercial sex for his financial benefit.

Under federal criminal code, 18 USC § 1593, victims of sex trafficking offenses are entitled to restitution for losses associated with the criminal offense. The United States Attorney’s Office is charged with the enforcement of court-imposed restitution orders or judgments. Collection will continue for 20 years after a defendant has completed any period of incarceration or until restitution is paid in full.

If you or someone you know may be impacted or experiencing commercial sex trafficking, please contact USAMA.VictimAssistance@usdoj.gov.

United States Attorney Leah B. Foley and Michael J. Krol, Special Agent in Charge of Homeland Security Investigations in New England made the announcement today. Valuable assistance was provided by the HSI Office in New Haven, Conn., the Lynn and Tewksbury Police Departments (Mass.) and the Hampden (Conn.) Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Stephen W. Hassink of the Narcotics & Money Laundering Unit prosecuted the case.

Source: United States Department of Justice (Human Trafficking)

BUFFALO, N.Y. – U.S. Attorney Michael DiGiacomo announced today that a federal grand jury has returned a nine-count indictment charging Darryl Lamont Paul, a/k/a Darryl Lamont, 59, of Cheektowaga, NY, with sex trafficking by force, fraud, and coercion, conspiracy to commit sex trafficking by force, fraud and coercion, transportation across state lines of an individual with intent that such individual engage in prostitution, and using and maintaining a drug-involved premises. The charges carry a mandatory minimum penalty of 15 years in prison and a maximum of life.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Caitlin M. Higgins, who is handling the case, stated that according to the indictment and a previously filed complaint, for the last 25 years, Lamont has owned NoLimit Entertainment (NLE), a company that provides entertainment, including nude dancers and topless bartenders, for parties such as stags and birthdays. Lamont is accused of conspiring with others to recruit young vulnerable women from area strip clubs, to work for NLE, and he would also refer young women to these strip clubs for additional employment.

During that time, Lamont is accused of using force, fraud, and coercion to sex traffic a total of six victims. He is also accused of transporting one of the victims across state lines to engage in prostitution. In addition, from 2021 to March 13, 2025, Lamont maintained a Beach Road apartment in Cheektowaga, for the purpose of manufacturing, distributing, and using cocaine.

Lamont was arraigned this morning before U.S. Magistrate Judge Jeremiah J. McCarthy and was detained.

The indictment is a result of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, under the direction of Acting Special Agent-in-Charge Mark Grimm.

The fact that a defendant has been charged with a crime is merely an accusation and the defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.

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Source: United States Department of Justice (Human Trafficking)

TALLAHASSEE, FLORIDA – Kimberly Robinson Gandy, 47, of Gulfport, Mississippi, was found guilty on Wednesday afternoon, June 18, 2025, by a federal jury, of: Conspiracy to Commit Sex Trafficking by Force, Fraud, or Coercion; Sex Trafficking by Force, Fraud, or Coercion; and Money Laundering. Her codefendant, Chad Cornelius Seymore, 49, of Dothan, Alabama, pled as charged, on Monday, June 9, 2025, immediately prior to the scheduled trial, to: Conspiracy to Commit Sex Trafficking by Force, Fraud, or Coercion; Sex Trafficking by Force, Fraud, or Coercion; Receiving Benefits From Sex Trafficking; Interstate Travel In Aid of Racketeering; and Money Laundering. The guilty plea and verdict were announced by John P. Heekin, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Florida.

U.S. Attorney Heekin said: “Thanks to the tireless efforts of our local, state, and federal law enforcement partners who investigated this case, and the tenacious work of the federal prosecutors and support staff in my office, we have dismantled this sex trafficking conspiracy and obtained justice on behalf of its victims.  My office is committed to fulfilling the promise of President Donald J. Trump and Attorney General Pam Bondi to aggressively prosecute those who prey upon and profit from human trafficking victims. This outcome is a testament to the outstanding collaborative work of the Capital City Human Trafficking Task Force.”

Court documents reflect that over a four-year period Seymore conspired with others to bond adult women out of county jail and then force them to commit commercial sex acts in Alabama and North Florida. Seymore recruited women suffering from drug addictions at hotels and through online advertisements. He threatened and physically abused his sex trafficking victims.  Gandy conspired with Seymore to traffic women in Panama City Beach and Destin. They used online money exchange platforms to transfer funds received from commercial sex acts.  

Sentencing for Chad Seymore is scheduled for August 15, 2025, at 2:00 p.m.  Kim Gandy will be sentenced on September 15, 2025, at 1:30 p.m.   The defendants will be sentenced at the United States Courthouse in Tallahassee before Chief United States District Judge Alan C. Winsor.

The convictions were the result of a joint investigation by the Leon County Sheriff’s Office, Homeland Security Investigations, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Dothan, Alabama Police Department, the Panama City Beach Police Department, the Panama City Police Department, with assistance from the United States Marshal’s Service, the Bay County Sheriff’s Office, the Manatee County Sheriff’s Office, the Wakulla County Sheriff’s Office, the Walton County Sheriff’s Office, and the United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Alabama. The case is being prosecuted by First Assistant United States Attorney Michelle Spaven.

This case is part of Operation Take Back America (https://www.justice.gov/dag/media/1393746/dl?inline ) a nationwide initiative that marshals the full resources of the Department of Justice to repel the invasion of illegal immigration, achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations (TCOs), and protect our communities from the perpetrators of violent crime. Operation Take Back America streamlines efforts and resources from the Department’s Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETFs) and Project Safe Neighborhood (PSN).

The United States Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Florida is one of 94 offices that serve as the nation’s principal litigators under the direction of the Attorney General.  To access public court documents online, please visit the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Florida website. For more information about the United States Attorney’s Office, Northern District of Florida, visit http://www.justice.gov/usao/fln/index.html.

Source: United States Department of Justice (Human Trafficking)

TUCSON, Ariz. – Sergio Herran, 47, of Tucson, Arizona, was sentenced on June 17, 2025, by Senior United States District Judge Raner C. Collins to a term of 8 years in prison and a term of 5 years in prison, to be served concurrently. Following a four-day trial in March, a jury convicted Herran of Distribution of Child Pornography and Possession of Child Pornography. Herran will be on lifetime supervision upon release from prison and must register as a sex offender. Herran was also ordered to pay restitution to identified victims.

Herran was previously tried and convicted in 2019 before a jury, but the conviction was reversed on appeal by the Ninth Circuit. On retrial, the evidence presented showed that Herran was responsible for downloading, viewing, and sharing images and videos of child pornography. These videos and images were located on Herran’s computer hard drive, phone SD card, and a tablet, which were found in Herran’s bedroom within an arm’s reach from where he slept. In total, there were over 10,000 images and 1,500 videos of child pornography on Herran’s devices, although only a representative sample was charged in the indictment. Herran was found guilty of distribution of two videos of child pornography, possession of 13 images of child pornography, and possession of eight videos of child pornography.

Homeland Security Investigations’ Tucson Human Exploitation and Trafficking Unit conducted the investigation in this case. Assistant U.S. Attorneys, Sandra M. Hansen and Anshul Krishn, District of Arizona, handled the prosecution.

CASE NUMBER:            CR-17-01026-TUC-RCC
RELEASE NUMBER:    2025-096_Herran

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For more information on the U.S. Attorney’s Office, District of Arizona, visit http://www.justice.gov/usao/az/
Follow the U.S. Attorney’s Office, District of Arizona, on Twitter @USAO_AZ for the latest news.

Source: United States Department of Justice (Human Trafficking)

Tampa, Florida – U.S. District Judge Mary S. Scriven has sentenced Dontae D. Burton (40, Tampa) to 20 years in federal prison for sex trafficking a minor and production of child sex abuse material.  A federal jury found Burton guilty on January 15, 2025.

According to court documents and evidence presented at trial, Burton arranged commercial sexual activity for two minors, ages 16 and 17, by creating and posting ads for them on adult escort websites. Burton handled all communications with clients, scheduled dates, determined the amount of money to be paid for the sex acts, and transported the victims to and from the dates. Burton managed the money and kept approximately half of what the clients had paid for the sex acts. Burton also recorded and edited a video of one of the victims performing a sex act on him.

“This sentence reflects the severity of Dontae Burton’s crimes of exploiting two vulnerable minors for commercial sex and creating child sexual abuse material in the process,” said Homeland Security Investigations Tampa assistant Special agent in Charge Kristopher Pagitt. “Protecting children from predators who traffic and abuse them remains one of HSI’s highest priorities, and we will continue to pursue justice for the victims.”

This case was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations and the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Courtney Derry.

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 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.

Source: United States Department of Justice (Human Trafficking)

BUFFALO, N.Y. – U.S. Attorney Michael DiGiacomo announced today that William A. Quinones, 51, of Mayville, NY, who was convicted by a federal jury of transportation of a minor with intent to engage in criminal sexual activity and sex trafficking of a minor, was sentenced to serve life in prison by U.S. District Judge John L. Sinatra, Jr.

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Aaron J. Mango and Franz M. Wright, who handled the prosecution of the case, stated that in July 2021, the Chautauqua County Sheriff’s Office received a complaint that Quinones had been sexually abusing two children over the past eight years. A subsequent investigation identified a total of four minor victims. During interviews with investigators, the victims stated that Quinones raped or attempted to rape and sexually abused them. Quinones threatened them with violence or threatened to hurt their families if they disclosed what he was doing. Quinones had regular sexual contact with one minor victim, referred to in the indictment, beginning when she was eight years old, as often as three to four times each week. The minor victim told investigators that Quinones started paying her in exchange for sexual contact, beginning when she was 13 years old until age 16 years old. On one occasion, Quinones took her to Erie, PA, to pick up drugs. Prior to returning home, Quinones stopped at a motel to engage in sexual intercourse. During the course of the sexual abuse, Quinones repeatedly raped and physically abused her. 

The sentencing is a result of an investigation by Homeland Security Investigations, under the direction of Special Agent-in-Charge Erin Keegan, and the Chautauqua County Sheriff’s Office, under the direction of Sheriff James Quattrone.

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Source: United States Department of Justice (Human Trafficking)

BOSTON – An Everett man pleaded guilty today in federal court in Boston to four counts of an indictment charging him with sex trafficking four separate female victims.   

Trevor Jones, 47, pleaded guilty to four counts of sex trafficking by force, fraud, or coercion. U.S. District Court Judge Allison D. Burroughs scheduled sentencing for Aug. 12, 2025. In May 2023, Jones was indicted by a federal grand jury. Jones was arrested on related state charges on March 23, 2023 and has remained in state custody since.

According to the charging documents, from at least 2016 until 2023, Jones ran a sex trafficking operation targeting victims who were suffering from substance use disorder. As part of his sex trafficking operation, Jones provided his victims with controlled substances, including heroin, fentanyl and cocaine to intensify their drug dependance and gain their compliance, while prohibiting the victims from obtaining controlled substances from other sources. Jones demanded “loyalty” and “dedication” from his victims. He allegedly enforced his requirements by punishing victims with acts of violence, threats of violence and withholding controlled substance from drug-dependent victims. As outlined in court, Jones beat one victim with a belt causing bruising throughout her body. When confronted with the injuries he caused, Jones told the victim that she deserved the abuse. Jones was verbally abusive toward another victim, locking her out of the house, demanding to know where her “loyalty” was and berating her for not “contributing everything” she was making. Another victim experienced degradation from Jones, with him telling her that she needed to “make daddy proud” and scolding her for being “disobedient.”

The charge of sex trafficking by force, fraud, or coercion provides for a mandatory minimum sentence of 15 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; Colonel Geoffrey D. Noble, Superintendent of the Massachusetts State Police; and Essex County District Attorney Paul F. Tucker made the announcement today. Valuable assistance was provided by the Revere, Arlington and Boston Police Departments. Assistant U.S. Attorney Elizabeth Riley, Chief of the Human Trafficking & Civil Rights Unit and Assistant United States Attorney Torey B. Cummings of the Human Trafficking and Civil Rights Unit are prosecuting the case along with Essex County Assistant District Attorneys Jessica Strasnick and Marina Moriarty, who were sworn in as Special Assistant United States Attorneys.

Source: United States Department of Justice (Human Trafficking)

David X. Sullivan, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, today announced that a federal jury in Hartford has found DAVID MARSHALL, also known as “Saint,” 40, of Bristol, with sex trafficking, obstruction of justice, and violation of a protective order offenses.

According to the evidence presented during the trial, between January and April 2022, Marshall compelled a victim into performing commercial sex for his financial benefit and repeatedly raped and beat her if she did not follow his orders.  He also controlled the victim by other means, including getting her addicted to fentanyl and threatening to harm her family.  In March 2022, the victim attempted to escape from Marshall and obtained an order of protection against him after he was arrested by Cromwell Police for threatening to kill her.

On April 27, 2022, Marshall was arrested by police in Freeport, Maine, after he severely beat the victim.  While in jail, Marshall contacted the victim in violation of the protection order, and attempted to convince her not to cooperate with the police and to continue to prostitute herself to earn money to bail him out of jail.  Marshall also contacted another person from jail in an attempt to remotely erase the evidence on his cell phone, but he was unable to do so because the FBI had already secured the phone.

On May 10, 2023, while he was detained in federal custody, Marshall again attempted to obstruct the investigation and prosecution of this matter by writing a letter to a family member with instructions to “harass” the victim to keep her from testifying.

Marshall forcibly sex trafficked at least one other woman between 2017 and 2022.  With his second victim, Marshall similarly used beatings, rapes, and other means to coerce her into engaging in commercial sex acts for his financial benefit for almost two years.

The trial began on April 30, 2025.  Yesterday, Marshall was convicted of two counts of sex trafficking by force, fraud, and coercion; two counts of attempted obstruction of sex trafficking enforcement; and one count of interstate violation of a protection order, causing serious bodily injury to the victim.  The jury found Marshall not guilty of one count of sex trafficking by force, fraud, and coercion.

At sentencing, which is not scheduled, Marshall faces a mandatory minimum term of imprisonment of 15 years and a maximum term of imprisonment of life.

Marshall has been detained since April 27, 2022.

This matter has been investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, with the assistance of the Newington Police Department, Cromwell Police Department, Freeport (Maine) Police Department, and Connecticut Department of Correction.  The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Angel Krull, Shan Patel, and Alexis Beyerlein.

U.S. Attorney Sullivan thanked the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Maine for its assistance in this case.

Source: United States Department of Justice (Human Trafficking)

Tampa, Florida – United States Attorney Gregory W. Kehoe announces the  unsealing of an indictment charging Jazzmen La Vone Gaskins (38, Texas) with sex trafficking and transportation of an individual to engage in prostitution. If convicted on all counts, Gaskins faces a maximum penalty of life in federal prison. 

According to the indictment, between July 2023 and March 2024, Gaskins knowingly trafficked Victim 1 knowing and in reckless disregard of the fact that means of force, threats of force, fraud and coercion would be used to cause the victim to engage in a commercial sex act. The indictment also alleges that on December 22, 2023, Gaskins knowingly transported Victim 2 from Texas to Florida with the intent that Victim 2 engage in prostitution and sexual activity.

An indictment is merely a formal charge that a defendant has committed one or more violations of federal criminal law, and every defendant is presumed innocent unless, and until, proven guilty.

This case was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations and the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office. It will be prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Courtney Derry.

Source: United States Department of Justice (Human Trafficking)

Seven cases move forward in Western Washington during National Child Abuse Prevention month