Pair sentenced to lengthy prison terms for roles in Bay Area child sex trafficking ring
SAN JOSE – A 41-year-old man and a 30-year-old woman, both of San Jose, have been sentenced to lengthy prison terms for their roles in a conspiracy to exploit underage girls for child pornography and sex trafficking, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
A U.S. District Court judge sentenced Ariel Guizar-Cuellar to more than 38 years behind bars and Araceli Mendoza to a decade in prison, federal prosecutors said in a statement Thursday.
Guizar-Cuellar and Mendoza, along with 29-year-old Redwood City resident Joceyln Contreras and 30-year-old Gilroy resident Alyssa Anthony, were indicted on April 7, 2016.
Guizar-Cuellar was charged with one count of conspiracy to commit sex trafficking of children, three counts of sex trafficking of children and one count of sexual exploitation of children. Mendoza was charged with conspiracy and three counts of sex trafficking.
Guizar-Cuellar pleaded guilty to all charges on May 7, 2019, and a jury convicted Mendoza of the conspiracy charge and one of the child sex trafficking counts on Oct. 6, 2021.
Contreras and Anthony also pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit sex trafficking of children on Sept. 4, 2019, and July 21, 2020, respectively. They are scheduled to be sentenced on Nov. 8.
Citing the defendants’ guilty pleas and evidence submitted at Mendoza’s trial, prosecutors said Guizar-Cuellar was the leader, primary facilitator, enforcer and main financial beneficiary of the operation. Guizar-Cuellar reportedly admitted that he and the other three defendants established and operated an illegal prostitution ring that exploited numerous women and children in the Bay Area over a 16-month period.
The defendants netted thousands of dollars through the operation and flaunted the profits to recruit more victims, according to prosecutors.
Prosecutors said Guizar-Cuellar rented rooms at various hotels and motels in San Jose, Santa Clara and Sunnyvale for prostitution and instructed the child victims not to tell anyone they were minors. The youngest of the victims that were recruited into the operation were 15 years old at the time.
Guizar-Cuellar physically and sexually abused both the child victims and his female co-defendants, according to prosecutors. In addition, the child victims were reportedly isolated from their families and support systems; deprived of food and sleep; given alcohol, cocaine and other substances to keep them compliant; and supplied with methamphetamine to keep them awake so they could meet nightly profit quotas.
Prosecutors said the defendants posted online prostitution advertisements using pictures of the child victims posed naked and in lingerie.
In addition to prison terms, Guizar-Cuellar and Mendoza were ordered to serve terms of supervised release and pay restitution to the victims. Guizar-Cuellar remains in custody and Mendoza has been ordered to self-surrender to the Bureau of Prisons in January.