St. Paul man pleads guilty to sex trafficking teenage girls throughout Minnesota
ST. PAUL, Minn. — A local man pleaded guilty Friday to recruiting and sex trafficking teenage girls throughout Minnesota, announced U.S. Attorney Andrew M. Luger, District of Minnesota.
This guilty plea resulted from an investigation conducted by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), and the Minnesota police departments of Minneapolis, St. Paul, Rochester and Roseville.
Dontre D’Sean McHenry, aka Dontre Sean McHenry, aka Avon, aka Rico, pleaded guilty Oct. 17 to sex trafficking a minor before Judge David S. Doty in U.S. District Court in Minneapolis. McHenry, 25, of St. Paul, is expected to be sentenced at a future court appearance.
"Sex traffickers are constantly on the hunt for vulnerable children they can exploit for their financial gain, which is a heartless crime,” said Paul J. Michael Netherland, special agent in charge of HSI St. Paul. “It is imperative for law enforcement to protect those who cannot protect themselves. HSI will continue to work in tandem with our law enforcement partners to identify, investigate, and assist in prosecuting individuals who sexually exploit children."
Minneapolis Police Chief Janee Harteau said: “Dontre McHenry has been transforming vulnerable girls into products for sale for years. This vile and horrific behavior will not be tolerated and we are determined to track down these people and bring them to justice. The Minneapolis Police Department, along with our law enforcement partners, is committed to protecting our youth. Our thanks go out to the police departments from the cities of Roseville, St. Paul, and Rochester, along with HSI special agents who worked so closely with us on this case, and U.S. Attorney Andrew Luger for his tenacity in charging cases like this.”
Assistant U.S. Attorney Laura Provinzino, who is in charge of human trafficking prosecutions, stated: “Sex trafficking of girls is a very real problem in Minnesota. We will continue to be aggressive in the prosecution of these cases to protect our young people from the manipulation and violence that causes them to be sold for sex. Dontre McHenry is being held accountable for his role in recruiting and trafficking the most vulnerable girls in our state – runaways, recent immigrants, and girls in foster care. Protecting our children from violent and manipulative predators like this defendant is a central mission for the U.S. Attorney’s Office and for our law enforcement partners.”
According to the defendant’s guilty plea and documents filed in court, from at least January 2013 until March 2014, McHenry recruited at least three girls under the age of 18 and prostituted them for his own financial benefit. McHenry advertised girls on the backpage.com website and in chatrooms. He made a sexually explicit video of a 15-year-old victim that was sent out to prospective “johns.” McHenry directed the victims how to talk to men on chat lines, what rates to charge for various sex acts, and how to set up “dates.” The victims were instructed to give all of the money they were paid for sex acts to the defendant, which they did.
According to documents filed in court, on March 13, 2014, Minneapolis police executed a search warrant at a motel room in Roseville that was previously occupied by McHenry and victims. During the search, investigators discovered, among other evidence, handwritten notes and a book entitled “Pimpology: The 48 Laws of the Game.” The handwritten notes included references to trafficking and prostitution, as well as questions that referred to recruiting and coercing minors. McHenry also had photos on his cellphone of two victims in their underwear, as well as numerous text message conversations from customers arranging to meet with victims to purchase sex.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Laura M. Provinzino and Melinda A. Williams, District of Minnesota, are prosecuting this case.
This investigation was part of Operation Predator, a nationwide HSI initiative to protect children from sexual predators, including those who travel overseas for sex with minors, Internet child pornographers, criminal alien sex offenders and child sex traffickers. HSI encourages the public to report suspected child predators and any suspicious activity through its toll-free hotline at 1-866-347-2423 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, 1-800-843-5678.
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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