Miguel “Midnight” Arnold of Harrisburg was found guilty of sex trafficking following a federal investigation that confirmed he was part of an operation that exploited more than 20 victims, including one as young as 14-years-old between 2015 and 2016. Arnold was convicted by a federal jury in late June after a four-day trial in front of United States District Court Judge Sylvia H. Rambo in the Middle District of Pennsylvania.
According to ABC News Channel 27, Arnold has been in prison on state charges since August 2016. His co-defendants are Tevin Bynoe, 27; Terrence Hawkins, 26; Joshua Guity-Nunez, 31; and Emonie Murphy, 23, all of Harrisburg. Murphy, Bynoe, and Hawkins all pleaded guilty last year to sex trafficking by force, fraud, and coercion. Guity-Nunez pleaded guilty to conspiracy to engage in sex trafficking by force, fraud, and coercion.
Arnold and four co-defendants rented motel rooms and recruited women using advertisements for escort services. They targeted women and girls who had some type of vulnerability to exploit such as age, financial insecurity, or substance use disorders. The conspirators would lie to the victims about the types of the services of they would have to provide as an escort. Drugs, including heroin, were provided to the victims by the conspirators.
According to Pennlive, Arnold has filed a hand-written appeal asking the judge for a new trial on the grounds his lawyer was ineffective. Defense Attorney Jonathan is asking the judge to overrule the jury and acquit Arnold, claiming the evidence presented by the prosecution did not prove him guilty of committing the crimes.
The CSE Institute applauds the work of the investigators in this case and the Middle District of Pennsylvania for pursuing charges against Arnold and the additional co-conspirators. We will provide updates about this case as they become available.
All viewed expressed herein are personal to the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Villanova University Charles Widger School of Law or of Villanova University