Sacramento Man Sentenced for Sex Trafficking of Minors

SACRAMENTO, CA—United States Attorney Benjamin B. Wagner announced that Reginald Wilson, 23, of Sacramento, was sentenced today by United States District Judge Frank C. Damrell Jr., to seven and a half years in prison to be followed by 15 years of supervised release for sex trafficking of minors. Wilson pleaded guilty September 8, 2009.

According to court documents, in December 2007, and January of 2008, Wilson recruited two girls, one 15 and one 16 years old, and caused them to engage in prostitution.

In sentencing, Judge Damrell said that Wilson’s actions were “horrible.” According to Judge Damrell, Wilson became caught up in a “pimp culture” and that his actions had been influenced as a result. Judge Damrell hoped that Wilson was aware of the harm his actions caused to the victims and their families, and that he understood that the victims and their families will be living with the consequences for the rest of their lives.

This case is the product of an extensive investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Innocence Lost Task Force, and Assistant United States Attorney Kyle Reardon, who prosecuted the case.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood (PSC), a nationwide initiative by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, PSC mobilizes federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information, visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov or call the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of California and ask to speak with the PSC coordinator.