Fridley Man Sentenced For Transporting A Minor To Engage In Prostitution

MINNEAPOLIS— Earlier this week in federal court, a 28-year-old man was sentenced for transporting a minor to engage in prostitution. On June 2, 2014, United States District Court Judge Richard H. Kyle sentenced Napoleon Long, Jr. to 180 months in federal prison on one count of Transportation With Intent to Engage in Prostitution. Long was indicted on April 10, 2013 and pleaded guilty on July 11, 2013.

In his plea agreement, Long admitted that in or about October 2011, he transported a 17- year-old girl from Minnesota to Colorado Springs, Colorado, with the intent that she engage in prostitution. Long also admitted knowing the girl was 17, and that she engaged in at least one sexual act while in Colorado and a pattern of sexual activity while working as a prostitute for him.

United States Attorney Andrew M. Luger stated that his Office was pleased with the sentence in this case. “Those such as this defendant, who profit by using underage girls in commercial sexual activity, will be prosecuted aggressively by this Office.”

This case was the result of an investigation by the Anoka County Sheriff’s Office and the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations. It was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys David P. Steinkamp and Manda M. Sertich.

In 2012, Yuri Fedotov, the head of the United Nations’ Office on Drugs and Crime reported to those attending a U.N. General Assembly meeting that an estimated 2.4 million people worldwide are victims of human trafficking at any one time, with 80 percent of them being exploited as sex slaves. He also said approximately $32 billion is earned collectively every year by the criminals who operate human trafficking networks. The U.S. Department of Justice reports that an estimated 14,500 to 17,500 people are trafficked within the U.S. alone each year.

For more information, visit http://www.ice.gov/human-trafficking/