Houston – Roger Maldonado, a 28-year-old Houston man has pleaded guilty to two counts of sex trafficking by the use of force, fraud and coercion, the U.S. Attorney Kenneth Magidson has announced.
Maldonado came to the attention of law enforcement when a female was found at a hospital whom Maldonado had physically assaulted in August 2015.
The victim had suffered a forehead laceration, upper and lower eyelid contusions, neck abrasions, a finger contusion and abdominal trauma. At that time, the female advised law enforcement that Maldonado was her boyfriend and that he had assaulted her.
In September 2015, law enforcement found a second female whom Maldonado had also assaulted. The investigation revealed that Maldonado had been trafficking these two victims on Backpage.com as well as at Pink Spa – a sexually-oriented business located in Houston known by law enforcement for prostitution.
Law enforcement officers later discovered that Maldonado had been taking photographs of these victims and posting advertisements in order to solicit business for these victims.
“Maldonado would set up the dates for the victims and transport the women in order for them to engage in commercial sex acts. The victims would then turn a portion of the money over to the defendant. Ultimately, Maldonado used force, threats of force, fraud and coercion to have these victims perform commercial sex acts from which he benefited financially”, the FBI investigators told the court.
U.S. District Judge Nancy F. Atlas has set sentencing for Nov. 29, 2016., Maldonado faces a minimum of 15 years and up to life in federal prison.
