Sex trafficker sentenced to over 24 years
PHILADELPHIA — An Allentown, Pennsylvania, man was sentenced Friday to more than 24 years in prison for running a sex trafficking operation and using heroin as a means of controlling multiple female victims. The sentencing was the result of an investigation by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) with assistance from the Allentown Police Department.
Deshawn King, 35, pleaded guilty in January 2014, to conspiracy to commit sex trafficking of women by force, fraud and coercion; two counts of sex trafficking by force, fraud or coercion; and two counts of attempted sex trafficking by force, fraud and coercion. King’s co-defendant, Daniel Blount, also pleaded guilty and was sentenced on July 15, 2014 to 20 years in prison.
“What this criminal and his co-conspirator did to their victims is deplorable and has no place is our society,” said John Kelleghan HSI Philadelphia special agent in charge. “Due to our partnership with local law enforcement, what seemed like prostitution was flushed out to be the much more sinister crime of human trafficking, and they’re now paying the price. HSI will continue to work to identify trafficking victims and bring these heinous criminals to justice.”
The investigation found between October 2012 and April 2013, King and Blount recruited and enticed heroin-addicted women to perform commercial sex acts at their direction by promising a continuous supply of money and drugs. The defendants used backpage.com to post sexually explicit photos of the women, advertising them for commercial sex acts. Men who wanted to have sex with the recruited women called the telephone number posted in the ad and met the women at hotels designated and paid for by the defendants.
King and Blount provided heroin to the women as a means of control or withheld the heroin as a form of punishment, causing the women to suffer withdrawal symptoms. They used physical force, including a taser, and threats of force against the women to cause or attempt to cause them to continue performing commercial sex acts.
The two men received and kept all the proceeds generated by the women. They also threatened to kill at least two of the victims and took turns raping at least one of the victims.
In addition to the prison term, U.S. District Court Judge James Knoll Gardner ordered 15 years of supervised release, a $1,000 fine and a $500 special assessment.
The case was investigated by HSI, Allentown Police Department and the Office of the Lehigh County District Attorney. It was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Sherri A. Stephan.
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