On December 3, New Jersey investigators announced the bust of two alleged human trafficking rings, one in North Jersey and one in South Jersey, along with the indictments of seven people. The two separate trafficking enterprises were located in Cumberland and Essex Counties.
According to state officials, the ring based in Essex County was led by a female trafficker who allegedly used acts of physical violence to control and coerce underage victims to perform sex acts. The trafficker allegedly advertised nude photos of the minors online and then arranged sexual encounters through smartphone applications. The victims were also allegedly subjected to sexual assaults by sex buyers.
In Cumberland County, reports allege that women were recruited weekly from Queens, New York and Paterson, New Jersey under the false pretense that they would be working as dancers. Instead, the women were taken to a house on North Laurel Street where they were allegedly sold for commercial sex. New Jersey Attorney General, Matthew Platkin, reported that the women were allegedly forced to perform sex acts on hundreds of men and subjected to violent activity.
A grand jury returned an indictment against the operator of the Cumberland County ring and his alleged co-conspirators: Usiel Luna, 42, Jose Perez Lopez, 40, Rosendo Vazquez-Hernandez, 35, and Yerson Puentes-Marquez, 28. Along with operating a brothel, it is alleged that the defendants were involved in a criminal organization that also distributed drugs. Luna, who was charged as an operator of the ring, could face 20 years to life if convicted, according to investigators.
Three other defendants were indicted in connection with the Essex County case: Khailah Meekins, 21, Donte Barkley, 28, and Richard Johnson, 24.
False promises of jobs, good wages and a better life are common recruitment tactics used by traffickers. Exploiters prey on vulnerabilities such as basic necessities or the desire for love to gain the trust of their victims and manipulate them into engaging in commercial sex. Those living in poverty, with a history of abuse or addiction, or those who are part of marginalized groups face a higher risk of exploitation due to the lack of resources, emotional instability and systemic inequality.
The CSE Institute praises the collaborative efforts of the New Jersey Office of the Attorney General, the Cumberland County Police, and the Essex County Police for carrying out these investigations and charging those involved, as well as for prioritizing the protection of minors from commercial sexual exploitation in New Jersey. We must persist in criminalizing human trafficking and the exploitation of young, vulnerable individuals, as doing so will significantly decrease the demand for commercial sex and reduce human trafficking as a whole.
We urge law enforcement to continue taking steps to protect their communities by conducting thorough investigations into suspected sex trafficking and encourage prosecutors statewide to utilize the human trafficking statutes when appropriate.
All views expressed herein are personal to the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of Villanova University Charles Widger School of Law or of Villanova University.