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Press Release

Hollywood Man Sentenced to Life Imprisonment for Kidnapping and Sex Trafficking by Force

For Immediate Release
U.S. Attorney's Office, Southern District of Florida

Wifredo A. Ferrer, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, Alysa D. Erichs, Special Agent in Charge, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations (ICE-HSI), Scott Israel, Sheriff, Broward Sheriff’s Office (BSO), and Frank Fernandez, Chief, Hollywood Police Department, announce that Shaun Eric McKinley, 35, of Hollywood, Florida, was sentenced to life imprisonment.

On September 18, 2014, a jury found McKinley guilty of one count of kidnapping and one count of sex trafficking by force. According to the evidence presented at trial, in December 2013, McKinley met a 28 year old female outside his home located in Hollywood. Within three days of meeting her, McKinley was acting as her pimp and physically assaulting her for what he saw as minor infractions, such as returning home late from a prostitution date. Thereafter, the victim was required to meet all customers at McKinley’s home where he could keep an eye on her. The victim averaged approximately 5-7 dates a day, 7 days a week, with all the earnings going to McKinley.

The victim first attempted to leave McKinley in February 2014, but he quickly found her. When he got her home, by dragging her for blocks by the hair, McKinley punished her by making her strip naked, covering her head with a pillow case, hog-tying her with extension cords and beating her with a board. The victim waited until April to get up the courage to attempt another escape, this one successful. Unfortunately, on May 18, 2014, McKinley lured her out of hiding using a ruse to get her into a dark alley, where he physically assaulted her, threw her into a car and drove away with her. The kidnapping was captured on a surveillance video from a nearby business and was played for the jury. The victim was able to escape only when McKinley stopped at a convenience store for a cigar, and left his friend in charge of watching her. That friend testified that after McKinley was out of sight he unlocked the car door so the victim could run. After flagging down a passing ambulance, the victim was taken to Memorial Regional Hospital where she was treated for her injuries, which included a fractured front tooth, a lip laceration and head contusions. Still undeterred, and fearing the victim would talk to police, McKinley showed up at the hospital looking for her, dressed in blood covered clothes. A concerned nurse and an alert Hollywood Police Officer working a detail kept McKinley from reaching the victim, and McKinley was placed under arrest.

Mr. Ferrer commended the investigative efforts of ICE-HSI, the BSO, and the Hollywood Police Department. The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Corey Steinberg and Paul Schwartz.

A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the United States Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.usdoj.gov/usao/fls. Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.flsd.uscourts.gov or on http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov.

Updated March 19, 2015