03/29/2024
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RALEIGH – The United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of North Carolina announced that in federal court, United States District Judge Terrence W. Boyle sentenced Maurice Malik Spencer, 22, of Raleigh, to 180 months imprisonment, followed by 10 years of supervised release.

Spencer was named in a six count Indictment filed on June 9, 2015.  On December 9, 2015, Spencer pled guilty to one count of Use of the Internet to Promote Prostitution and one count of Interstate Transportation for Prostitution (Mann Act).

The investigation revealed that Spencer transported two female victims, one of whom was a 14-year-old female, from New York to North Carolina to engage in prostitution. Once in North Carolina, the defendant prostituted a third female victim as well. The defendant prostituted the two adult victims in September and November 2014; he also prostituted the 14-year-old victim in November 2014.

The defendant promoted his business by advertising the victims on internet websites and through social media websites such as Facebook. He also used websites such as Facebook to recruit his victims.

Throughout, the defendant used violence and threats of violence to control his victims and coerce them into continuing in prostitution. After his arrest, the defendant continued to threaten two victims.

Investigation of this case was conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Greenville Police Department.  Assistant United States Attorney Erin Blondel represented the government.

This case was part of the Project Safe Childhood initiative, a national program aimed at ensuring that criminals exploiting children are effectively prosecuted by making full use of all available law enforcement resources at every level.  For more information about this important national project, Project Safe Childhood, go to www.projectsafechildhood.gov.

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