An Arizona man who brought two teenage girls and a young woman to San Diego for the purposes of having them work as prostitutes was sentenced Friday to 10 years in federal prison.
The U.S. Attorney's Office said officers who were part of the San Diego Human Trafficking Task Force spotted 23-year-old Tempe resident Clifford Stokes Jr. dropping the victims off in "an area in San Diego known for street-based commercial sex trafficking" in January 2023. The victims were then seen "walking the street and waving at vehicles."
Stokes' car was stopped by officers after he was later seen picking the victims up.
Prosecutors say the two underage victims were 16 years old — one of whom was reported missing from Arizona at the time — and the woman was 19.
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The 19-year-old told law enforcement Stokes used violence and threats to force her to earn $1,000 per day for him, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office, which said the juveniles were later reunited with their families in Arizona.
San Diego U.S. Attorney Tara McGrath said in a statement, "Today's sentence underscores the gravity of human trafficking crimes. The road to recovery for these young girls will be long and painful, but they will walk free from fear and brutality years before this defendant is released from prison."
