Luidji Benjamin, Sex Trafficking, New York 2020

A 23-year-old Queens man has been convicted of sex trafficking offenses in Manhattan federal court, with a potential sentence of life in prison.

Luidji Benjamin, a/k/a 'Zoe,' was found guilty of conspiracy to commit sex trafficking and sex trafficking of a minor following a five-day jury trial before U.S. District Judge Jed S. Rakoff.

Manhattan U.S. Attorney Geoffrey Berman said, 'As proven in court today, Luidji Benjamin callously preyed on vulnerable girls to prostitute for his own financial gain. This sexual predator ruined the lives of at least two young women, advertising their bodies for commercial sex.'

According to the allegations, Benjamin engaged in sex trafficking and commercial sexual exploitation of two minor victims from late 2015 to December 2015. He recruited, enticed, harbored, transported, provided, obtained, and maintained women for the purpose of commercial sex, including one minor victim who resided at a residential treatment facility in Westchester County.

Benjamin recruited Victim-1 to engage in commercial sex through a social media website and used online classifieds websites, including Backpage.com and Craiglist.com, to post advertisements for commercial sex. Certain of these advertisements included graphic images, including of Victim-1 performing oral sex on the defendant.

Benjamin was convicted of one count of conspiracy to commit sex trafficking, which carries a maximum sentence of life in prison, and one count of sex trafficking of a minor, which carries a mandatory minimum of 10 years in prison and a maximum sentence of life in prison.

The minimum and maximum potential sentences in this case are prescribed by Congress and are provided here for informational purposes only, as any sentencings of the defendants would be determined by the Court.

This prosecution is part of an ongoing investigation that, including Benjamin, has charged 19 defendants, set forth in eight indictments, for the sex trafficking of at least 13 minor girls and young adults in New York State's social services system.

Source: https://www.justice.gov/usao-sdny/pr/queens-man-convicted-manhattan-federal-court-sex-trafficking-offenses