A Flatbush man accused of prostituting two teenage girls – ages 15 and 17 – pled not guilty to sex-trafficking charges in Brooklyn Supreme Court Wednesday.
The 24-year-old defendant faces up to 50 years in prison on 10 charges — including multiple felony counts for sex trafficking a child, promoting prostitution and endangering child welfare, according to Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez.
“We allege that this defendant took advantage of two vulnerable young girls, trafficking them for money in exchange for sex,” said Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez. “I am committed to rescuing and protecting our at-risk children and teens from predators who seek to abuse and exploit them.”
Police arrested the defendant on Oct. 3 after federal investigators tipped them off an advertisement displaying a photograph of two missing teenagers, and an undercover officer met the defendant on E. 29th Street in Flatbush, where they arrested him after negotiating on a price, Gonzalez said.
The suspect’s sex trafficking scheme occurred over several weeks, with the defendant posting his phone number along with online ads and then selling the minors to potential customers, prosecutors said.
The defendant was ordered held on $250,000 bail. He is scheduled back in court on Jan. 8.
