Roswell man charged with sex trafficking of children

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – Alexander M.M. Uballez, United States Attorney for the District of New Mexico, and Raul Bujanda, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Albuquerque Field Office, announced that Juan Rodriguez was charged by criminal complaint with sex trafficking of children. Rodriguez, 38, of Roswell, New Mexico, will remain in custody pending trial, which has not been scheduled.

According to a criminal complaint, the investigation of Rodriguez began on Nov. 18 when law enforcement officers in Chavez County, New Mexico, responded to a reported sexual assault involving a 12-year-old victim, identified as Jane Doe 1. Rodriguez allegedly had paid money to Jane Doe 1 in exchange for engaging in sexual activity on three occasions, beginning in September.

Rodriguez allegedly first contacted Jane Doe 2 via Snapchat two or three years earlier, when she was 10 or 11 years old. Rodriguez learned of Jane Doe 2’s address and parked outside her residence. Rodriguez allegedly gave $90 to Jane Doe 2 and another victim, identified as Jane Doe 3, for sexual activity.

A complaint is only an allegation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty. If convicted, Rodriguez faces a minimum of 15 years and up to life in prison.

The FBI’s Albuquerque Division Child Exploitation and Human Trafficking Task Force investigated this case with assistance from the Roswell Police Department. Assistant United States Attorney Joni Autrey Stahl is prosecuting the case as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice (DOJ) to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse.  Led by United States Attorneys’ Offices and DOJ’s Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims.  For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit http://www.justice.gov/psc/.

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