ADDITIONAL CHARGES FILED AGAINST THIRD-STRIKER MAN FOR OPERATING CRAIGSLIST “MODELING” SCHEME TARGETING TEENS AND COLLEGE STUDENTS TO PIMP AND PANDER

SANTA ANA, Calif. – Additional charges were filed today against a man who operated a Craigslist “modeling” scheme to recruit teens and college students to then pimp and pander. The man was previously charged with desensitizing and grooming a minor human trafficking victim by sexually assaulting her.

Co-defendant Yolymar Ojeda-Gomez, 22, Irvine, is charged in Case # 16CF2769 with one felony count of human trafficking a minor, one felony count of pimping a minor, and one felony count of pandering a minor over 16 by procuring. Ojeda-Gomez faces a maximum sentence of 12 years in state prison and mandatory lifetime sex offender registration. She is out of custody after posting $70,000 bond and is scheduled for a pre-trial hearing on Sept. 22, 2017, at 9:00 a.m. in Department C-55, Central Justice Center, Santa Ana

Circumstances of the Case

Castillo is accused of being a human trafficker/pimp and Ojeda-Gomez is accused of working with him and recruiting other women to prostitute for Castillo. In the pimp/prostitution subculture, pimps exploit women and/or children for financial gain and often assign ranks to the women they exploit. With the rise in popularity of social media and ease of meeting people on the internet, many pimps and human traffickers utilize a variety of social media to locate potential victims. Ojeda-Gomez is accused of being paid by Castillo when she found women and girls to work for them as sex workers. The victims are often required to turn over all payment they receive for sex acts from sex purchasers to their pimp. Failure to follow these rules can result in physical or emotional abuse.

• Beginning in 2015, Castillo is accused of posting advertisements on Craigslist that claimed to seek models, specifically college students, with the promise of making good money.
• At various intervals between May 2015 and October 2016, Castillo is accused of pimping and pandering 21-year-old Jane Doe 2, 18-year-old Jane Doe 3, 20-year-old Jane Doe 4, 25-year-old Jane Doe 5, 20-year-old Jane Doe 6, and 24-year-old Jane Doe 7, all of whom he met through the online advertisements.
• Castillo is accused of meeting with the victims and admitting the job was for prostitution, not modeling, then requiring the victims to “audition” and “train” for the job by having sex with him and having nude photos taken.
• The defendant is accused of posting the sexually explicit photos on websites known for soliciting commercial sex, arranging for the victims to meet with sex purchasers, and collecting money they received from sex acts.
• In September 2016, Ojeda-Gomez is accused of contacting 17-year-old Jane Doe 1 through an advertisement the defendant is accused of posting on Craigslist.
• Ojeda-Gomez is accused of arranging for the victim to meet with Castillo, claiming they could help young women make money through modeling.
• Between Oct. 2, 2016, and Oct. 18, 2016, Castillo is accused of meeting Jane Doe 1 to commit sodomy and unlawfully engaging in oral and vaginal sex with the victim, knowing she was underage.
• Castillo is then accused of arranging for Jane Doe 1 to meet with over a dozen sex purchasers, then using money she received for his own benefit.
• Castillo is accused of driving the victim to areas of Orange County known for prostitution while his driver's license was suspended.
• Jane Doe 1's family member reported her missing in Costa Mesa.
• On Oct. 18, 2016, members of the Orange County Human Trafficking Task Force (OCHTTF) located Castillo and Jane Doe 1 at a hotel in Lake Forest and arrested the defendant at the scene.
• On Oct. 26, 2016, Ojeda-Gomez was located and arrested by OCHTTF near her home in Irvine.
• Further investigation by OCHTTF lead to information about the other six victims.

Members of the OCHTTF and the Orange County District Attorney's (OCDA) Office work proactively to protect women and minors from falling victim to commercial sexual exploitation. This case was investigated by OCHTTF, a partnership between Anaheim Police Department, California Highway Patrol, Costa Mesa Police Department, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Irvine Police Department, Newport Beach Police Department, OCDA, Orange County Sheriff's Department, Santa Ana Police Department, and community and non-profit partners.

Prosecutor: Deputy District Attorney Bryan Clavecilla, HEAT Unit

Proposition 35 and HEAT

To read more about California's anti-human trafficking Proposition 35 and the OCDA's Human Exploitation and Trafficking (HEAT) Unit, please visit www.orangecountyda.org and select Human Trafficking Information from the Media Center drop down menu.

*Defendant previously charged with desensitizing and grooming minor trafficking victim by sexually assaulting her

Orange County District Attorney / Case # 16CF2706 & 16CF2769 / August 18, 2017