José Torres was found guilty of four counts of persuading, inducing and luring out-of-state sex workers to travel to New Jersey and engage in prostitution.
But when the women asked for payment, Torres became aggressive, often assaulting and raping them, according to the authorities. Each count of coercion and incitement carries a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison and a fine up to $250,000 dollars. The sentencing is scheduled for February 27, reported Patch.com.
Torres, 45, whose last known address was North Brunswick, Middlesex Countywas found guilty after a six-day trial before Judge Brian R. Martinotti in the federal court in newark the most populous city in New Jersey.
According to U.S. Attorney Philip R. Sellinger, from May 2015 to October 2019, Torres persuaded, induced and lured women, often sex workers, to travel from out of state, such as Canada and New York, to engage in prostitution with him, according to a statement from the prosecutor’s office.
According to the indictment, Torres visited prostitution sites on the Internet and targeted sex workers, inviting them to New Jersey with promises of large sums of paymentbut once the women traveled there he refused to pay them, according to court documents.
He was originally arrested in 2020 and at that time the FBI’s Newark divisionin collaboration with the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), said officials were looking to identify more possible victims, reported NJ.com.
In April of this year three pimps and three employees of a hotel in The Bronx (NYC) were charged as suspected of running a minor prostitution ring that included forcing a 16-year-old girl to go on 100 “dates” in one year,prosecutors alleged.
In February, a member of the Crips gang was accused of promoting the prostitution of women, including a 14-year-old girl, who were forced to live naked in a house in Staten Island (NYC) and serve him as his servants, according to a federal indictment.
In January Lawrence Winslow and Alan Velvett were sentenced to 10 years in prison after pleading guilty to rape and sex trafficking of three minors in Queens. The girls were 13, 14 and 15 years old at the time.
In a similar case, in December it was announced that two men from New Jersey They faced long sentences accused of producing child pornography and sexual trafficking of minors.
In the fall of 2022, the owner of a motel in long Island(NY), his wife, son, and an employee were arrested and accused of allowing sex trafficking on their premises.
Previously in June, a Hispanic couple was prosecuted in Manhattan (NYC) on suspicion of using violence to force women into prostitution and sell sexual content on OnlyFans.
In February 2022 Burma “Nancy” Rincón, a former Teaneck (NJ) resident who had fled to Colombia, was arrested upon returning to the country on suspicion of running a prostitution ring in New York and New Jersey with Latina women. That same month five members of a Mexican familywho operated a family sex trafficking ring from Mexico to NY and other states were sentenced to long prison terms.
At the end of 2021, prosecutor Melinda Katz warned that Much of the sex trafficking activity occurs near transportation hubs, including airports. And he pointed out that hotels “give a feeling of anonymity.” It has been repeatedly said that Queens is the capital of prostitution disguised as massages in the US.
He National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) has warned since 2020 about an increase in cases of child pornography during the pandemic by the increased time of adults and children online.
If you are or know a victim of human trafficking, please contact the national hotline 888-373-7888.You can also text “HELP” to 233733 (BeFree). If you have an emergency Call 911 or go to your local police department.
