Dallas Man Convicted of Sex Trafficking

A Dallas man pleaded responsible yesterday to operating a brutal intercourse trafficking ring for almost 20 years, introduced U.S. Lawyer for the Northern District of Texas Chad E. Meacham.

Anthony Johnson, 45, pleaded responsible to conspiracy to commit intercourse trafficking by pressure, fraud, and coercion, and intercourse trafficking on Could 10, narrowly avoiding his trial, which was scheduled to start the identical day.

“Like Tremont Blakemore, a north Texas trafficker who pleaded responsible simply two weeks in the past, Anthony Johnson systematically tormented his victims, convincing them they’d no alternative however to bend to his will,” mentioned U.S. Lawyer Chad Meacham. “It’s troublesome to fathom that human trafficking occurs on the streets of Dallas, however it does, daily. For those who or somebody you realize is being victimized, attain out for assist. As not possible as it could appear within the second, there’s a method out.”  

“These trying to revenue from industrial intercourse by the viciousness of human trafficking are inflicting vital hurt in our communities,” mentioned Appearing Particular Agent in Cost of HSI Dallas Christopher Miller. “This defendant’s responsible plea strikes one step nearer to discovering justice for the victims he brutalized and manipulated.”

In plea papers, Mr. Johnson, aka “Macc Bucc,” admitted he compelled quite a few ladies to have interaction in industrial intercourse acts and switch the proceeds over to him. He set “quotas,” compelled the ladies to work for hours on finish, and brutally beat them with an extension twine after they got here up brief, “disrespected” him, or didn’t comply with his guidelines. He additionally required the ladies to steal from industrial intercourse clients, instructing them to rifle by clients’ pockets for money or jewellery and examine their automobiles for valuables.

One lady, recognized in court docket paperwork as “Grownup Sufferer 7,” endured his abuse for a number of years. The evening he recruited AV7, Mr. Johnson directed his second-in-command, Demetrice Deckard, to take her to Harry Hines and educate her the best way to solicit industrial intercourse clients. She engaged in industrial intercourse together with her first buyer only a few days later. All through her time in his trafficking group, AV7 was compelled to journey cross-country to have interaction in industrial intercourse and was routinely overwhelmed when she tried to go away the group.

In a pretrial submitting, prosecutors indicated they had been ready to introduce into proof a 911 name positioned by a special sufferer’s mom after her daughter referred to as her in tears from a passerby’s telephone. 

“She mentioned, ‘mamma, I wanna come house, they received’t let me come house,’ she mentioned, ‘they received all the pieces I received,’” the girl informed the dispatcher. “‘Mamma, he received me by gunpoint, he’s received these women following me, he beat me up actual dangerous.’”

In one other pretrial submitting, prosecutors indicated that they had been additionally ready to introduce proof that Mr. Johnson obtained a contraband cellphone whereas in jail awaiting trial and used the telephone to proceed operating his group.  Based on prosecutors, textual content messages obtained from the cellphone confirmed that Mr. Johnson continued to instruct ladies the place to work, which motels to make use of, the best way to steal from clients, and after they may end work for the evening.  Mr. Johnson additionally directed ladies to ship him movies of themselves having intercourse with industrial intercourse clients.   In plea papers, Mr. Johnson admitted that he additionally ran his trafficking group from behind bars from 2014 to 2019, following a conviction for aggravated assault with a lethal weapon.

Mr. Johnson now faces as much as life in federal jail.

Ms. Deckard pleaded responsible in April to conspiracy to have interaction in trafficking by pressure, fraud, and coercion and faces as much as life in federal jail.  One other co-defendant, Ashley Neice, pled responsible to conspiracy to hinder an official continuing and admitted to conspiring with Mr. Johnson to contact a sufferer within the prison case with a purpose to inform her to not cooperate with legislation enforcement. Ms. Neice faces as much as 20 years in federal jail.

Homeland Safety Investigations’ Dallas Area Division performed the investigation with the help of the Dallas Police Division, Miami Police Division, and the Miami Workplace of Lawyer Normal. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Melanie Smith and Renee Hunter prosecuted the case with the assistance of appellate liaison Brian McKay.

For those who consider you or somebody you realize is a sufferer of human trafficking, name native legislation enforcement or the 24/7 confidential Nationwide Human Trafficking Hotline at 1-888-373-7888.