7 people indicted as 2 human trafficking rings dismantled in New Jersey, AG's office says
Seven people in total were indicted in two separate human trafficking rings in New Jersey, the attorney general's office announced Tuesday.
One of the human trafficking rings was based in Cumberland County, South Jersey, and the other in Essex County, North Jersey.
According to New Jersey Attorney General Matthew Platkin, 42-year-old Usiel Luna, 40-year-old Jose Perez-Lopez, 35-year-old Rosendo Vazquez-Hernandez, and 28-year-old Yerson Puentes-Marquez, all of whom are from Bridgeton, were indicted for their role in dealing drugs and running a brothel out of a Cumberland County home.
The suspects would allegedly lure women to the home on North Laurel Street in Bridgeton under the pretense they'd be working as dancers but then were subjected to commercial sex.
According to the AG's office, every week more groups of women were brought to the brothel from Queens, New York, and Paterson, New Jersey, where they were forced to perform commercial sex on hundreds of men weekly.
The victims witnessed violent activity at the brothel and were instructed by Luna that they couldn't leave the premises, the AG's office said.
Investigators also allegedly seized distributable amounts of methamphetamine, cocaine, and marijuana, along with over $50,000 cash from the brothel and Luna's home.
"Our foremost priority remains the safety and well-being of our communities, and we will not rest until every victim is shielded from harm and restored to safety," said Col. Patrick J. Callahan, superintendent of the New Jersey State Police.
3 indicted in Essex County human trafficking ring
Meanwhile, Newark residents, Khailah Meekins, 21, and Donte Barkley, 28, were indicted on Monday for allegedly trafficking two 15-year-olds and a 13-year-old. Twenty-four-year-old Richard Johnson of Irvington, New Jersey, was also indicted back on Aug. 14, for aggravated assault after allegedly paying a minor to have sexual relations with him.
The suspects allegedly advertised sexual encounters with the teen trafficking victims online and posted nude photos of them, according to the AG's office.
Investigators found that the teens would be brought to short-term rentals and hotels where the suspects received payment and the victims were sexually assaulted. The AG's office said Barkley allegedly arranged the meetups involving the victims, told them what sexual acts to do to the customers, and suggested to Meekins how much money to charge.
Allegedly, Barkley would receive some of the proceeds Meekins collected from the sexual assaults, according to the AG's office.
The suspects also allegedly threatened and abused the teens, sometimes biting them, pulling their hair, hitting them with an extension cord, punching and stomping on them, according to the AG's office.
"There is no tolerance for the exploitation of anyone, especially in this dehumanizing way," Platkin said. "We urge members of the public to call our confidential hotline, 855-END-NJ-HT, if they are being victimized or see someone who they suspect is being subjected to this type of exploitation. We will investigate, and we will prosecute."
