U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Florida, John P. Heekin, announced on Friday multiple guilty pleas related to a sex trafficking operation that spanned the miles from Dothan to the Florida panhandle.
Kimberly Robinson Gandy, 47, of Gulfport, Mississippi, was found guilty on Wednesday by a federal jury of conspiracy to commit sex trafficking by force, fraud, or coercion; sex trafficking by force, fraud, or coercion; and money laundering. Days before, on Monday, Chad Cornelius Seymore, 49, of Dothan, pled guilty to conspiracy to commit sex trafficking by force, fraud, or coercion; sex trafficking by force, fraud, or coercion; receiving benefits from sex trafficking; interstate travel in aid of racketeering; and money laundering.
"Thanks to the tireless efforts of our local, state, and federal law enforcement partners who investigated this case, and the tenacious work of the federal prosecutors and support staff in my office, we have dismantled this sex trafficking conspiracy and obtained justice on behalf of its victims," Heekin said. "My office is committed to fulfilling the promise of President Donald J. Trump and Attorney General Pam Bondi to aggressively prosecute those who prey upon and profit from human trafficking victims. This outcome is a testament to the outstanding collaborative work of the Capital City Human Trafficking Task Force."
Court records state that, over four years, Seymore conspired with others to bond adult women out of county jail and then force them to commit commercial sex acts in Alabama and North Florida. He also recruited drug-addicted women at hotels and through online advertisements. Records state he also threatened and physically abused his victims. Gandy conspired with Seymore to traffic women in Panama City Beach and Destin, Florida. The pair used online money exchange platforms to transfer funds received from commercial sex acts.
Seymore will be sentenced in August, while Gandy is slated for sentencing in September.
The convictions resulted from a joint investigation conducted by multiple Florida law enforcement agencies, the Dothan Police Department, Homeland Security, the FBI, the United States Marshal's Service, and the United States Attorney's Office for the Middle District of Alabama.
The indictments are part of the DOJ's efforts that began in March to "repel the invasion of illegal immigration, achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations (TCOs), and protect our communities from the perpetrators of violent crime."
Operation Take Back America uses DOJ resources to "implement core policy objectives established by President Trump and the Attorney General."
Although specific numbers are not available, the initiative has already led to thousands of arrests nationwide, particularly in states that share a border with Mexico.
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