In the early morning of January 11, 2018, Monroe County Police arrested Joseph Randolph Payne from Brooklyn, New York following a human trafficking investigation at a Stroudsburg hotel.
Court records show that Payne was charged with various acts of promoting prostitution, including one count of encouraging prostitution (a third degree felony), and one count of transporting a prostitute in the Commonwealth (a second degree misdemeanor). Additionally, Payne was charged with one count of possession of an instrument of a crime with intent (a first degree misdemeanor), and one count of false identification to law enforcement officers (a third degree misdemeanor). He was arraigned later that day on January 11, and is currently detained in Monroe County Prison on $25,000 bail.
WFMZ reports that officers responded to an advertisement on Backpage.com. Officers believed the woman in the advertisement was a trafficking victim. An undercover officer responded to the advertisement and arranged to meet the alleged victim in a Stroudsburg hotel.
According to WFMZ, once the officer was inside the hotel, the person allegedly sold for sex was taken into police custody in order to ensure her safety. It was then discovered that Payne allegedly brought her to the Stroudsburg hotel to engage in commercial sex. Payne allegedly waited in the parking lot where he called the woman’s cell phone in order to confirm that she entered the arranged hotel room.
Officers searched the victim’s cell phone and found photographs and conversations indicating that Payne allegedly took pornographic photos of the woman, as well as scheduled and transported her to meet sex buyers. Monroe County Police then contacted Payne, and asked him to return to the hotel. Authorities later encountered Payne when he was pulled over for allegedly speeding in East Stroudsburg. During that traffic stop, Payne was arrested.
The CSE Institute applauds the work of Monroe County officials in making this arrest. However, as the facts of this continue to unfold we encourage the Monroe District Attorney’s Office to consider utilizing the human trafficking laws in Pennsylvania to bring additional charges against Payne, if appropriate. Moreover, the CSE Institute is hopeful that by focusing on traffickers who profit from commercial sexual exploitation, local authorities can begin to incorporate the Nordic Model, an approach that aims to curb the demand for commercial sex that fuels trafficking, and connects prostituted persons with any assistance services they need.
All views 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.