SANTA ANA, Calif. – A man was convicted yesterday of trafficking and pimping a 16-year-old girl in Anaheim.

Munoz is a human trafficker/pimp who exploits women and/or children for financial gain. Pimps often establish rigid rules that their victims are expected to follow including requiring victims to speak only when spoken to, address the pimp as “Sir” or “Daddy,” assigning seats in the car based on “rank,” and setting daily quotas that the victims are expected to fulfill. 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 deprivation of food and/or physical and/or emotional abuse.

Circumstances of the Case

• Between Jan. 15, 2018 and Jan. 29, 2018, Munoz trafficked and pimped 16-year-old Jane Doe by arranging for the victim to engage in commercial sex for his financial gain.
• On Jan. 29, 2018, the Orange County Human Trafficking Task Force (OCHTTF) located a sexually explicit advertisement depicting Jane Doe, who appeared to be a minor, on a website known for prostitution and human trafficking. Investigators responded to the advertisement and set up a “date” with the victim at a Motel 6 in Anaheim.
• OCHTTF officers responded to the motel and located the defendant and Jane Doe entering a room, which was registered to Munoz.
• An undercover OCHTTF investigator contacted the victim in the motel room and arrested Munoz at the scene.
• At the time of his arrest, Munoz was in possession of a cell phone containing text messages consistent with pimping and trafficking Jane Doe.

Members of the Orange County Human Trafficking Task Force (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 the Anaheim Police Department, California Highway Patrol, Costa Mesa Police Department, Homeland Security Investigations, Irvine Police Department, Newport Beach Police Department, OCDA, Orange County Sheriff's Department, Santa Ana Police Department, and community and non-profit partners.

Prosecutor: Senior Deputy District Attorney Daniel Varon, HEAT Unit

Proposition 35 and HEAT

To read more about California's anti-human trafficking Proposition 35 (Prop 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.

Orange County District Attorney / Case # 18CF0358 / July 31, 2018