Two Plead Guilty to Gang-Led Sex Trafficking of High School Girls

ALEXANDRIA, VA—Two men associated with the Underground Gangster Crips (UGC) set based in Fairfax County, Virginia, have pled guilty to participating in a prostitution business that recruited and trafficked high school girls.

Neil H. MacBride, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia; Kenneth T. Cuccinelli, II, Attorney General of Virginia; Colonel David Rohrer, Fairfax County Chief of Police; and Ronald T. Hosko, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Washington Field Office Criminal Division, made the announcement.

Today, Donyel Pier Dove, aka “Bleek,” 27, of Alexandria, Virginia, pled guilty to sex trafficking of a juvenile, which carries a mandatory minimum penalty of 10 years and a maximum penalty of life in prison. He also pled guilty to use of a firearm during a crime of violence in relation to two armed robberies of 7-Eleven stores in Manassas, Virginia in March 2012 and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon in Fairfax, Virginia, which also occurred in March 2012. Dove faces a mandatory minimum penalty of five years and a maximum of life on the use of a firearm charge and a maximum of 10 years in prison on the possession of a firearm charge. He is scheduled to be sentenced on August 10, 2012 by United States District Judge Anthony J. Trenga.

According to a statement of facts filed with his plea agreement, Dove admitted to being an associate of UGC, which was engaged in sex trafficking of juveniles and adults from April 2009 through March 2012. Dove served as a bodyguard in the UGC prostitution enterprise and walked with prostitutes for protection on multiple occasions. On at least two occasions, in 2009 and 2011, Dove harbored juveniles, ages 16 and 17, while they were engaging in commercial sex acts. He also admitted to purchasing a credit card that was used to pay for advertisements on Backpage.com to solicit customers for the prostitution enterprise.

On May 14, 2012, Henock Ghile, aka “Knots,” 23, of Springfield, Virginia, pled guilty to sex trafficking of a juvenile. In court, Ghile admitted that he was a UGC gang associate and that from May 2011 through September 2011 he transported two 17-year-old girls to work as prostitutes. Sentencing has been scheduled for August 3, 2012 before United States District Judge Claude M. Hilton.

On April 14, 2012, two others associated with the UGC prostitution operation—Michael Tavon Jefferies, aka “Loc,” 21, of Woodbridge, Virginia, and Christopher Sylvia, 23, of Springfield, Virginia—pled guilty to sex trafficking of a juvenile.

This case was investigated by the Fairfax County Police Department and the FBI’s Washington Field Office, with assistance from the Northern Virginia Human Trafficking Task Force. Special Assistant United States Attorney Marc Birnbaum from the Virginia Attorney General’s Office and Assistant United States Attorney Inayat Delawala are prosecuting the case on behalf of the United States.

Founded in 2004, the Northern Virginia Human Trafficking Task Force is a collaboration of federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies—along with non-governmental organizations—dedicated to combating human trafficking and related crimes.