A Mexican sex trafficker is facing 15 years in jail after a team at Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) exposed his massive network.
An ICE investigation led to the arrest of Hugo Hernandez-Velazquez, who was extradited to the United States from Mexico in February of 2021, according to an ICE press release.
Hernandez-Velazquez pleaded guilty to one count of sex trafficking and was sentenced on July 10. He will be deported after completing his sentence.
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Prosecutors proved in court that Hernandez-Velazquez and his family in Mexico used force, fraud, and coercion to trick young women in Mexico into engaging in prostitution in the U.S. by telling them they had marriage proposals from men living in the U.S. But once the woman made it to America, they were enslaved into the sex trade. The girls were beaten, forced to undergo abortions, often heavily drugged, and were told their families in Mexico were at risk if they did not obey their traffickers.
The organization headed by Hernandez-Velazquez operated in New York, Alabama, Connecticut, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Maryland, Massachusetts, Mississippi, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Virginia.
“For nearly a decade, the defendant and his family oversaw a vicious sex trafficking campaign wrought with violence, manipulation, coercion, and outright force against women whom they lured into romantic relationships through false promises of love and support,” said ICE Homeland Security Investigations New York Special Agent in Charge Ricky J. Patell. “Every day, victims are targeted for human trafficking and other vile forms of exploitation and abuse, often at the hands of their own spouses or purported caretakers. Today’s sentencing is no doubt a direct result of the bravery of each survivor who courageously spoke up. Together with our partners, HSI is unflinchingly committed to investigating and vigorously pursuing anyone, anywhere, who sexually exploits the very individuals they claim to care for.”
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U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of New York Joseph Nocella, Jr., added, “For years, the defendant and his siblings operated an illegal, abusive, and exploitative sex trafficking operation that stripped victims of their dignity and subjected them to inhumane violence. It is my hope that the prosecution of their tormentors and the punishment meted out will provide a measure of closure for the brave survivors who assisted the investigation and will help them on their path to healing.”
This gang and its network are just one example of the wild upswing in prostitution created by the Biden administration with his lax border policies.
Thousands of young women and boys found themselves forced into prostitution to pay back the costs they incurred from coyotes who trafficked them to the U.S. during the Biden years.
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