Charlotte federal jury finds man guilty of sex trafficking 16-year-old girl
A 42-year-old man from Spencer was found guilty of sex trafficking a minor in federal court on Wednesday in Charlotte, according to a U.S. Attorney’s Office news release.
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A jury convicted Marvin Qualls of conspiracy to sex traffic a minor and sex trafficking of a 16-year-old girl who ran away from home between December 2023 and January 2024, the news release said.
Another man, Out Ekong, 22, was Qualls’ co-defendant and pleaded guilty to sex trafficking of a minor.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office said Qualls met the girl at work and began trafficking her with Ekong while knowing she was a minor.
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“In trafficking the victim, the two men posted advertisements of the minor on commercial sex websites, set prices and arranged the minor victim’s sexual encounters with customers, booked hotels rooms where the encounters took place, and acted as security while the victim engaged in commercial sex transactions,” the news release said.
Qualls and Ekong traveled with the girl across the Carolinas, keeping the money people paid for sexual encounters with the teen.
Both are in federal custody awaiting sentencing. Sex trafficking a minor carries a minimum sentence of 10 years. That, as well as conspiracy to sex traffic a minor, could result in a life sentence, the news release said.
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