Seattle Detective Describes Sex Trafficker David Delay's Methods

Video Transcript

He always picked individuals that were vulnerable or at a time in their life where they were looking for an out. Or exploited the fact that somebody wants to become famous and he could promise them that fame. He could promise them a new life. If somebody wanted a relationship or just to feel loved, he’d promise that. So he really focused on whatever vulnerability that specific victim had.

He was a master manipulator, and he would threaten them, for one, that if they, since they had signed the contract—and usually a nondisclosure agreement with that—he would threaten to sue them for breach of contract. He had a lot of explicit photographs of them. And he would threaten to show that to their families or friends. And in some cases, he had a relationship with these victims, and they really felt that he really did care about them and really did love them, and that kept them still in contact with him as well. 

I think it’s very unique, as this was primarily done through coercion and fraud. A lot of times there is force used, there is drugs used; I think a lot more cases of trafficking, you see that verses the deceit with using the contracts and the promise of fame and money. That was unlike anything I had ever heard of before.