Mount Vernon Man Sentenced to 160 Months in Prison for Sex Trafficking a Minor

A federal judge in the Southern District of New York has sentenced Rai Thomas, a/k/a ‘Bandz,’ to 160 months in prison for sex trafficking of a minor and use of interstate facilities to promote sex trafficking and prostitution.

According to the allegations, between January and February 2022, Thomas trafficked Minor Victim-1 to engage in commercial sexual activity across multiple hotels within the Bronx and Brooklyn, New York. Minor Victim-1 had been living in a children’s group home at the time that Thomas trafficked her.

Thomas, 31, of Mount Vernon, New York, was convicted at trial before U.S. District Judge Nelson S. Román in October 2025. He was sentenced to 160 months in prison and five years of supervised release.

‘Rai Thomas preyed on a child for profit, advertising her to strangers on the internet and selling her for sex again and again so he could enrich himself,’ said U.S. Attorney Jay Clayton. ‘New Yorkers want child sex traffickers off our streets, never to return. Today’s lengthy prison sentence is indicative of this Office’s commitment to continuing to work tirelessly with our law enforcement partners to remove sex traffickers like Thomas from our streets and communities.’

The investigation was led by the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Hudson Valley Safe Streets Task Force, the Town of Poughkeepsie Police Department, the Dutchess County Sheriff’s Office, the City of Poughkeepsie Police Department, and the New York City Police Department.

The case is being handled by the Office’s White Plains Division. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Qais Ghafary, Kaiya Arroyo, and Jorja Knauer represented the Government at trial, with the assistance of Paralegal Specialists Gabriela Salerno, Samantha Olsen, and Shannon Becker.

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