Alleged Sex Trafficker Indicted In Baltimore; Could Face Up To 385 Years In Prison
BALTIMORE (WJZ) -- Baltimore officials announced that they indicted a man on 19 counts of human trafficking Monday.
Donte Alexander Barr, also known as Tavon Williams or "Tay" allegedly recruited, coerced and sexual abused at least 25 women, most of whom were minors, for his financial gain.
According to the indictment, Barr is accused of posting more than 500 advertisements on Backpage.com soliciting sex with girls as young as 15.
He allegedly bought sex toys, condoms and purchased hotel rooms for the women to perform sex acts for clients.
Officials said the FBI responded to one of Barr's ads and an undercover agent negotiated a price and agents set up a sting to arrest Barr.
"Human trafficking is a form of modern day slavery that involves the use of force, fraud, and or coercion, to recruit, transport, abduct, or deceive vulnerable individuals," said State's Attorney Mosby. "Human trafficking is a hidden crime because victims rarely come forward to seek help for a variety of reasons."
According to the city state's attorney's office, if found guilty, Barr could face up to 385 years in prison.
"I'm encouraged by this indictment, as it represents the type of multi-agency collaboration that is needed to find these types of predators," Mosby said. "This collaboration showcases the criminal justice system at its best."
The arrest comes at the end of a year long investigation starting in March 2017 into human trafficking in the city, which started with an tip to the Department of Juvenile Services.
The Samaritan Women, a national Christian organization providing care for survivors of sex trafficking, says cases like this are bittersweet.
"Only about 9 percent of our women have ever seen their traffickers go to justice, and so it is a rare occasion and that we celebrate, but we would like to see more," executive director Jeanne Allert said. "They can be vulnerable in a number of different ways and traffickers are very good at praying on vulnerability."
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