SACRAMENTO — A 26-year-old Elk Grove man is headed to prison for prostituting a young teen in Oakland, Sacramento and other parts of Northern California, federal authorities said.
U.S. District Court Judge Garland E. Burrell Jr. on Friday sentenced Abdul Basier Hashimi to 151 months in prison, according to a U.S. Department of Justice news release.
On Aug. 31, Hashimi pleaded guilty to sex trafficking of a child. According to statements made during the hearing, he met the victim on social media in August 2014, when she was 13 years old, and “caused her to work” as a prostitute when she turned 14.
Hashimi reportedly managed the victim’s activities by creating an internet advertisement, renting a motel room and driving her to areas with “prostitution activity.”
The victim gave Hashimi all the money she earned, according to statements made at the Aug. 31 hearing.
“Child sex traffickers often prey upon our community’s most vulnerable minors — runaways, foster kids, children who face difficult circumstances — promising the young victims that they will receive care and support,” said FBI Special Agent in Charge Sean Ragan.
“In actuality,” he continued, “traffickers treat their victims as commodities to acquire and sell, generating profit from exploiting them and leveraging their youth as a selling point.”