Darren O. Coleman, Sex Trafficking, Iowa 2019

Sex Trafficking Ring in Des Moines Dismantled

In a major blow to human trafficking, nine defendants were sentenced to significant prison terms for sex trafficking and related offenses in the United States District Court for the Southern District of Iowa, announced United States Attorney Marc Krickbaum.

On March 13, 2019, the last of seven co-defendants charged with sex trafficking was sentenced before United States District Court Chief Judge John A. Jarvey. The lead defendant in that case, Darren O. Coleman, was previously found guilty of sex trafficking an adult by force, fraud, or coercion and was sentenced to 25 years in prison.

Coleman was found to have trafficked several adult women in Des Moines, Iowa and Atlanta, Georgia. His co-defendant, Mark Phillip Carter II, pleaded guilty to sex trafficking a minor and was sentenced to 175 months in prison. Carter was found to have trafficked additional young women.

Another co-defendant, Stephen Kalu Cobb, was sentenced to 190 months in prison and ordered to pay $15,000 in restitution to his victim for sex trafficking an adult woman by force, fraud or coercion. Other defendants included: Julyen Xavier Singleton – sentenced to 21 months in prison; Ronzell Montez Williams – sentenced to 36 months in prison; Breeanna Lynae Brown – sentenced to 50 months in prison; and Sarina Ann Williams – sentenced to 135 months in prison.

The defendants exploited their victims’ vulnerabilities in order to coerce them into engaging in commercial sex acts, from which the defendants financially benefitted. These vulnerabilities included the victims’ age, substance abuse issues, financial hardship, or court supervision. The defendants used physical violence, threats of violence, emotional manipulation, and other means to coerce their victims into engaging in commercial sex acts.

The case was investigated by the Des Moines Police Department, Vice and Narcotics Control Section. The impact of sex trafficking on its victims was acknowledged by Chief Judge Jarvey, who cited the seriousness of the offense, stating, "This is exceedingly serious behavior. It was repeated, it was abusive, it was lucrative, it was degrading, it was depraved, and it damaged young women irrevocably."

Source: https://www.justice.gov/usao-sdia/pr/nine-defendants-sentenced-federal-prison-sex-trafficking