Man from Albuquerque pleads guilty to federal sex trafficking charge

            Albuquerque, N.M. – Cornelius “Chip” Galloway, 37, of Albuquerque, New Mexico, was sentenced yesterday to 17 years in prison on federal sex trafficking charges.

            In March, Galloway pled guilty in federal court, admitting to participating in a sex trafficking ring in Bernalillo County from October 2016 to February 2017.  Galloway and other members of the ring operated a prostitution service in which they used force, threats, fraud and coercion to compel women to engage in sex for money.  Galloway admitted the members of the ring advertised prostitutes online, rented hotel rooms for prostitution and arranged appointments with clients by phone.  They did not allow the victims any say about hours, fees or locations, and forced them to turn over all the money they received from customers. 

            Co-defendant Danielle Galloway, to whom Cornelius Galloway was married during the time of their criminal acts, pled guilty on April 8, 2019 to conspiracy to commit sex trafficking.

           Co-defendant Marcus Taylor, 35, has pled guilty to conspiracy to commit sex trafficking, while Matthew Woods, 31, is in custody and scheduled for trial on August 10.  An indictment is only an accusation.  Defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.

            This case was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations along with the Albuquerque Police Department.  Assistant U.S. Attorneys Letitia Carroll Simms and Jack E. Burkhead prosecuted the case.

# # #