Two Indicted for Sex Trafficking
| U.S. Attorney’s Office July 21, 2011 |
NEWPORT NEWS, VA—Roberto A. Darden, 25, of Newport News, Va., and Ujima Crudup, 37, of Hampton, Va., were indicted by a federal grand jury today for their roles in a conspiracy involving sex trafficking of children and production of child pornography.
Neil H. MacBride, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, Alex J. Turner, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Norfolk Division, made the announcement. Darden and Crudup face a maximum penalty of life in prison.
“These men are accused of taking advantage of a vulnerable teen and blackmailing her into prostitution,” said U.S. Attorney MacBride. “Sex trafficking is an unconscionable crime that preys on young women and reduces them to indentured sex slaves. We’re working closely with our law enforcement partners to fight this reprehensible form of exploitation.”
According to the indictment, Darden and Crudup obtained money in exchange for sex acts performed by a 13-year-old victim. The defendants transported the victim to hotels in Hampton Roads in order to engage in prostitution and provided alcohol and illegal drugs to the victim. They then videotaped the victim engaged in sex acts and used the videotape to coerce the victim into signing a contract explaining the requirements of being a prostitute and working for the defendants. The defendants made fliers and posted additional advertisements on the Internet. The victim was provided a cell phone with which to communicate with prostitution customers.
This case was investigated by FBI. Assistant United States Attorneys Elizabeth Yusi and Lisa McKeel are prosecuting the case on behalf of the United States.
Criminal indictments are only charges and not evidence of guilt. A defendant is presumed to be innocent until and unless proven guilty.
A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia at www.justice.gov/usao/vae. Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia at http://www.vaed.uscourts.gov or on http://pacer.uspci.uscourts.gov.