A generic shot of lifeguards at work in Mission Beach
A quick-thinking lifeguard on Mission Beach alerted San Diego police last year when a woman approached him for help.
The woman told the lifeguard that she had been sex-trafficked from Las Vegas by David Warren, a 37-year-old man from that Nevada city.
Prosecutors announced Thursday that Warren had received a 10-year sentence for "coercing three women to engage in prostitution and transporting them from Las Vegas to San Diego for that purpose."
Warren was convicted of one count of transportation for the purpose of prostitution and a charge of coercion and entitlement, according to law enforcement, who said the victims included one homeless woman. The trio had been threatened with violence and exposed them to emotional abuse as well, prosecutors said.
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The situation came to the attention of investigators on Sept. 12 after the San Diego Human Trafficking Task Force was tipped off, with officers eventually locating two additional women who were victims at a San Diego hotel.
"Once Warren and the women were in San Diego, he took the victims to various beaches to solicit customers," stated a news release issued Thursday by the Southern District of California's U.S. Attorney's Office.
“Profiteers exploit victims of human trafficking anywhere they think they can take advantage, even on the beach in daylight,” said U.S. Attorney Tara McGrath. “This brave woman saved herself and others by trusting a San Diego lifeguard who immediately jumped into action."
National Human Trafficking Hotline: 1-888-373-7888 TEXT BeFree or 233733.
