St. Louis County Woman Accused of Sex Trafficking

ST. LOUIS – A woman from St. Louis County, Missouri has been accused of prostituting a minor online.

Carrie Little, 43, of Olivette, was indicted by a federal grand jury on April 19 and now faces three felonies: sex trafficking of a minor, coercion and enticement and a violation of the Mann Act.

She appeared in U.S. District Court in St. Louis Thursday and pleaded not guilty to the charges.

The enticement count in the indictment accuses Little of using interstate commerce (a computer, tablet and smartphone) from at least July 2018 through July 2020 to persuade and coerce the minor to engage in prostitution. The Mann Act charge accuses her of using the internet to promote, manage and facilitate prostitution from March 2019 through June 2022. The sex trafficking charge accuses her of recruiting, enticing and/or advertising the minor to participate in a commercial sex act from at least July 2018 through July 2020.

The sex trafficking and coercion charges each carry a potential penalty of 10 years to life in prison. The Mann Act charge carries a penalty of up to five years in prison.

On Thursday, Little waived a detention hearing, meaning she will be held in jail until trial.

Little also faces charges in St. Louis County Circuit Court.

Charges set forth in an indictment are merely accusations and do not constitute proof of guilt.  Every defendant is presumed to be innocent unless and until proven guilty.

The case was investigated by the St. Louis County Police Department and the FBI. Assistant U.S. Attorney Dianna Collins is prosecuting the case.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and the Department of Justice 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 www.justice.gov/psc.