California Man Sentenced to 18 Months in Prison for Prostitution-Related Charges

CHARLOTTE, NC—A California man was sentenced today in U.S. District Court in Charlotte to serve 18 months in prison, followed by one year of supervised release, for transporting an individual to engage in prostitution, announced Anne M. Tompkins, U.S. Attorney for the Western District of North Carolina.

U.S. Attorney Tompkins is joined in making today’s announcement by Brock D. Nicholson, Special Agent in Charge of ICE-Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) in Georgia and the Carolinas, and Chris Briese, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Charlotte Division.

Craig Allen Rodgers, 31, of Lawndale, California, pleaded guilty in September 2011 to one count of knowingly transporting an individual from another state to the Western District of North Carolina, with the intent that the individual engage in prostitution or any sexual activity. He was arrested and indicted in May 2011.

According to filed documents and court proceedings, from about March 2011 to about May 2011, Rodgers transported a young woman with the initials “J.M.” to work as a prostitute in various cities throughout the United States. According to the criminal complaint filed in this case, Rodgers used online services to advertise commercial sex acts offered by “J.M.” and another female. Court records indicate that “J.M.” generally made $300 per hour and Rodgers kept nearly all of the money that she earned from prostitution. Court records also indicate that, at least on one occasion, Rodgers struck “J.M.” when she told him that she no longer wanted to work as a prostitute; however, Rodgers denied striking “J.M.” During today’s sentencing hearing, U.S. District Court Judge Max O. Cogburn, Jr. noted that Rodgers had been previously charged in Pennsylvania for striking a prostitute working for him.

In announcing today’s sentence, Judge Cogburn warned Rodgers that the sentence should serve as a “wake up call” to stop his pattern of using violence to get women to engage in commercial sex acts.

The defendant has been in local federal custody in the Western District of North Carolina since May 2011. He will be transferred to the custody of the Federal Bureau of Prisons upon designation of a federal facility. All federal sentences are served without the possibility of parole.

The investigation is handled by HSI and FBI. The prosecution for the government was handled by Assistant United States Attorney Kenneth M. Smith of the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Charlotte.