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Prince of Penn Track: Sex Trafficker Charged with Murder and Related Crimes
Brooklyn, NY – A seven-count indictment was unsealed today in federal court in Brooklyn charging Omari Scott, 32, aka ‘Prince’ and ‘Sir Prince,’ and Michael Simmons, 38, aka ‘Victory,’ with murder in the course of sex trafficking, sex trafficking by force and related crimes.
The charges stem from the defendants’ trafficking of women and promoting prostitution with customers in cars, hotels, and along a stretch of Pennsylvania Avenue in Brooklyn known as the ‘Penn Track,’ which has operated for years as an open-air commercial sex market.
In the spring of 2023, Scott violently punished a trafficking victim who attempted to leave his control to work instead for Cleveland Clay, another individual who had women working for him in prostitution on the Penn Track. Scott and Simmons decided to murder Clay, which Simmons carried out by shooting him multiple times at close range on May 1, 2023.
Scott was arrested earlier today and is scheduled to be arraigned this afternoon before United States Magistrate Judge Joseph A. Marutollo. Simmons is currently serving a sentence on unrelated charges and will be arraigned in the Eastern District of New York at a later date.
“As alleged, the defendants conspired to brazenly murder a rival for control of a victim they perceived to be their property in the course of sex trafficking,” stated United States Attorney Breon Peace. “This Office is working alongside our federal and state law enforcement partners to prosecute the perpetrators who exploit vulnerable women for profit and we will provide support for these victims who have been harmed.”
FBI Assistant Director-in-Charge James Smith said, “Human lives are not pawns for criminals to manipulate for their own cruel wishes. Omari Scott and Michael Simmons’s desire to establish control over their sex trafficking operation extended beyond violence against their victims, leading to the alleged murder of their rival.”
NYPD Commissioner Edward A. Caban stated, “It is unequivocally detestable to compound the loathsome act of sex trafficking by allegedly murdering a business rival. I commend everyone at the office of the U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District and the FBI’s New York Field Office for their continued partnership in this case.”
As alleged in court documents, Scott and Simmons both recruited women to work in prostitution on their behalf along the Penn Track. Scott used threats and violence to force at least two victims to engage in commercial sex work and provide him with the proceeds. For example, in a conversation obtained by law enforcement, Scott warned a victim that he would ‘knock [her] out for disrespecting me,’ and, on another occasion, told an associate on a recorded call that he was ‘beating this b—- up tonight’ for failing to work quickly enough to locate customers.”
The indictment alleges that Scott and Simmons’ sex trafficking operation generated substantial profits, which they used to fund their lavish lifestyles. The indictment also alleges that the defendants used violence and intimidation to maintain control over their victims and to eliminate any potential threats to their operation.
The FBI, NYPD, and U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of New York are commended for their tireless efforts to bring these alleged perpetrators to justice and to protect the vulnerable victims of sex trafficking.
Key Facts
- State: New York
- Agency: DOJ USAO
- Category: Sex Crimes|Human Trafficking|Violent Crime
- Source: Official Source ↗
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