EVERETT MAN SENTENCED TO FIVE TO EIGHT YEARS IN PRISON FOR TRAFFICKING WOMAN AT SEVERAL MASSACHUSETTS HOTELS

EVERETT MAN SENTENCED TO FIVE TO EIGHT YEARS IN PRISON FOR TRAFFICKING WOMAN AT SEVERAL MASSACHUSETTS HOTELS

Defendant Coerced Woman into Sexual Servitude

SALEM – An Everett man has been sentenced to five to eight years in state prison on human trafficking and deriving support from prostitution charges in connection with coercing a woman into sexual servitude at several Massachusetts hotels, Attorney General Maura Healey announced today.

Steven Diaz, age 34, of Everett, was found guilty on June 10 by an Essex Superior Court jury on the charges of Trafficking of Persons for Sexual Servitude and Deriving Support from Prostitution.

Today, Judge John Lu sentenced Diaz to five to eight years in state prison.

“Pimps and traffickers, like this one, prey on our most vulnerable residents and profit off of their exploitation,” said AG Healey. “Human trafficking is not a victimless crime. We will continue to prosecute those committing these egregious crimes and to help prevent more victims from being brought into this horrible life.”

The AG’s Office, with assistance from the Essex District Attorney’s Office, began an investigation in May 2014 after Massachusetts State Police arrested Diaz and Marquis Campbell, of Hyde Park, following a motor vehicle stop during which a woman in the backseat asked the state trooper for help. They were later indicted by a Statewide Grand Jury in July 2014.

Authorities allege that Campbell and Diaz picked up the woman days before the arrest and coerced her into providing sexual services for a fee in hotels in several Massachusetts communities, namely Saugus and Danvers, over a three-day period.

Diaz, allegedly along with Campbell, took photos of the woman and subsequently used them to post advertisements offering sexual services on websites known to advertise prostitution. They transported the victim to hotels and to outcalls, coerced her to engage in sexual acts with multiple men, monitored the money being earned, and ultimately collected all of the proceeds.

Campbell also allegedly used threats of violence against the victim and raped her. He is charged with Trafficking of Persons for Sexual Servitude, Kidnapping, Deriving Support from Prostitution, and Rape (two counts). His trial is scheduled for Sept. 12 in Essex Superior Court.

This case was prosecuted by Assistant Attorney General Jennifer Snook, of the AG’s Human Trafficking Division, and Assistant Attorney General Kristyn Dusel, with assistance from Division Chief Deb Bercovitch. Nikki Antonucci, Chief of the AG’s Victim Services Division, Financial Investigator Daniel DeAngelis, and Paralegals Stephanie Haven and Emily Bartlett also assisted in the case. The investigation was conducted by the Massachusetts State Police assigned to the AG’s Office and Director Christopher Kelly and investigators from AG Healey’s Digital Evidence Lab, with assistance from Massachusetts State Police and the Essex District Attorney’s Office.