El Paso man sentenced to life in federal prison on human trafficking charges

EL PASO, Texas — A local man was sentenced to life in federal prison Wednesday for his role in a prostitution scheme involving a minor, announced U.S. Attorney Robert Pitman, Western District of Texas.

Charles Marquez, 54, was sentenced Sept. 3 as the result of an investigation conducted by the FBI, together with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), as part of Operation Cross-Country, a nationwide initiative that focuses on child prostitution.

On Nov. 21, 2013, a federal jury convicted Marquez of one count each of the following charges: sex trafficking of a minor; sex trafficking by force, fraud or coercion; transporting for prostitution; conspiracy to coerce or entice a minor to engage in sexually explicit activity; coercion or enticement; and importation of an undocumented alien for immoral purpose.

Testimony during trial revealed that from August 2007 through February 2012, Marquez conspired with Martha Jimenez-Sanchez, 41, of Juarez, Mexico, to recruit women in Mexico for their prostitution scheme by placing advertisements in a Ciudad Juarez newspaper offering jobs in the United States. Once recruited, the defendants arranged to transport the females to El Paso, harbor them in local motels and force them to commit prostitution for the financial benefit of the defendants.

“The sentencing of Marquez is an affirmation of the dedication, commitment, and hard work of the FBI, HSI, and our state and local partners to work diligently in keeping the El Paso Community safe,” said FBI Special Agent-in-Charge Douglas E. Lindquist, El Paso Division. “Collectively, we will continue to seek out, investigate and prosecute those individuals and criminal enterprises that target the underprivileged and children for human trafficking.”

“HSI is relentless in its investigations of transnational criminal organizations that exploit immigrants and children for their own financial gain,” said Dennis A. Ulrich, special agent-in-charge of HSI El Paso. “HSI will continue to work effectively with our other federal partners, as well as our international counterparts, to identify and dismantle human trafficking rings.”

Sanchez faces up to 10 years in federal prison after pleading guilty Nov. 26, 2012, to one count of transportation for prostitution. Sanchez, who was released on bond after pleading guilty, is a fugitive.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Rifian Newaz and Steve Spitzer are prosecuting this case on behalf of the government.