May 7, 2015

Two Plead Guilty to Sex Trafficking of a Minor

FRESNO, CA—Fresno residents Michael Anthony Andrade, 34, and Javier Solis, 29, pleaded guilty today to sex trafficking of a minor, United States Attorney Benjamin B. Wagner announced.

According to court documents, Andrade and Solis forced two girls, ages 15 and 17, to prostitute themselves first in Fresno and then in San Luis Obispo. In addition, the 15‑year-old girl was taken to a tattoo parlor in Fresno where the defendants’ nicknames were tattooed on her, one name on each shoulder.

Court documents further reflect the 17-year-old, a runaway, spoke with Fresno Police officers on October 24, 2013, after her mother brought her home from San Luis Obispo. While being interviewed, she told officers about the 15-year-old who was still in San Luis Obispo under the control of the defendants as well as the motel where she was staying. In response, the San Luis Obispo Police Department was contacted, and officers were able to successfully remove her from that location.

Solis is scheduled to be sentenced on August 10, 2015, and Andrade is scheduled to be sentenced on August 17, 2015. Each faces a sentence of 10 years to life in prison and a $250,000 fine. The actual sentences, however, will be determined at the discretion of the court after consideration of any applicable statutory factors and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, which take into account a number of variables.

This case is the product of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Fresno Police Department, the San Luis Obispo Police Department and the San Luis Obispo District Attorney’s Office. Assistant United States Attorneys Michael Frye and Mia Giacomazzi are prosecuting the case.