Child sex trafficker sentenced in North Carolina ICE investigation
CHARLOTTE, N.C. – A Charlotte man was sentenced to more than 15 years in federal prison Tuesday for two counts of sex trafficking of minor and two counts of transporting minors across state lines for the purposes of prostitution.
Tony Lee Drum, 32, was investigated by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department (CMPD). His case was successfully prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of North Carolina.
According to filed court documents and statements made in court, between August 2013 and October 2013, Drum knowingly recruited, enticed and harbored two minor females, identified in court documents as D.W. and A.C. for the purpose of engaging in commercial sex acts. Court records show that Drum met D.W. on a telephone chat service and A.C. on social media, and he knew both girls were minors. On two occasions, court records indicate that Drum drove across state lines to pick up the minors and transport them to Charlotte to engage in prostitution. According to court documents, an alert CMPD officer encountered D.W. while patrolling an area in Charlotte in September 2013, and later identified her as a missing teen.
Law enforcement found A.C. sleeping in Drum’s car in October 2013, while serving an arrest warrant on Drum for trafficking D.W.
“Drum preyed upon young, vulnerable victims, and with the promise of food, shelter and security, he lured them to Charlotte with the intention of exploiting them for his financial benefit. Fortunately, a well-trained law enforcement officer observed one of the victims and the immediate circumstance and as a result, two young women were rescued from a life on the streets. My office is committed to prosecuting sex trafficking cases and continuing to work with our law enforcement partners to identify those who engage in this illegal, dehumanizing business,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Jill Westmoreland Rose.
“Unfortunately, child predators have become increasingly adept at using social media and other modern communication tools to identify and manipulate their victims,” said Special Agent in Charge Ryan L. Spradlin, HSI Atlanta. “Whenever HSI and our law enforcement partners encounter children for sale, we won’t rest until we’ve identified and arrested the predators seeking to pimp them out and have rescued their victims from a life of exploitation and abuse.”
Drum will remain in federal custody until he is transferred to the custody of the Federal Bureau of Prisons upon designation of a federal facility. All federal sentences are served without the possibility of parole. Assistant U.S. Attorney Kimlani Ford, of the U.S. Attorney’s office in Charlotte, prosecuted the case.
This investigation was conducted under HSI's Operation Predator, an international initiative to protect children from sexual predators. Since the launch of Operation Predator in 2003, HSI has arrested more than 12,000 individuals for crimes against children, including the production and distribution of online child pornography, traveling overseas for sex with minors, and sex trafficking of children. In fiscal year 2014, more than 2,000 individuals were arrested by HSI special agents under this initiative.
HSI encourages the public to report suspected child predators and any suspicious activity through its toll-free Tip Line at 1-866-DHS-2-ICE or by completing its online tip form. Both are staffed around the clock by investigators. Suspected child sexual exploitation or missing children may be reported to the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children, an Operation Predator partner, via its toll-free 24-hour hotline, 1-800-THE-LOST.
For additional information about wanted suspected child predators, download HSI's Operation Predator smartphone app or visit the online suspect alerts page.
HSI is a founding member and current chair of the Virtual Global Taskforce, an international alliance of law enforcement agencies and private industry sector partners working together to prevent and deter online child sexual abuse.
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