SANTA ANA, Calif. – A felon from Fresno was sentenced to three years and eight months in state prison today for pimping a young woman and illegally possessing a loaded firearm.

Circumstances of the Case

• Trinidad is a pimp who exploits women for financial gain. The victims are typically required to turn over all payment they receive for sex acts from sex purchasers to their pimp.
• Between Aug. 23, 2016, and Aug. 25, 2016, Trinidad drove 18-year-old Jane Doe from Fresno to areas in Orange County known for human trafficking and prostitution.
• The defendant posted sexually explicit advertisements of the victim soliciting commercial sex and kept part of the money she received from sex purchasers.
• On Aug. 25, 2016, members of the Orange County Human Trafficking Task Force (OCHTTF) arranged to meet with Jane Doe at a motel on Newport Boulevard in Costa Mesa.
• Trinidad exited the room Jane Doe was occupying and waited at a nearby bus stop during the victim's meeting with undercover detectives.
• The defendant returned to the room when he thought the sex purchaser was gone.
• When contacted by police, Trinidad had $300 cash in his possession and had a bag in the motel room which contained a loaded firearm with the serial number scratched off. The room was reserved under the defendant's name.
• Trinidad was arrested near the motel by the Costa Mesa Police Department (CMPD).

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 CMPD and OCHTTF, a partnership between Anaheim Police Department, California Highway Patrol, CMPD, 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 Kelly Manley, HEAT Unit

Orange County District Attorney / Case # 16WF1947 / October 20, 2017