Three 14-year-old girls from Bristol, Connecticut were rescued by their families after being forced into prostitution by men they met online, according to police reports.
The three-day ordeal began with what one victim described as a “joy ride gone bad” during a sleepover earlier this year.
The incident has resulted in charges against seven men, all facing serious criminal counts related to the exploitation of minors.
Law enforcement officials have emphasized the case as a stark reminder that human trafficking remains an active threat to communities.
The girls had gathered for a sleepover in Bristol when events took a dangerous turn.
According to police documents, they were transported to Hartford, Connecticut, where multiple assaults occurred over the course of three days.
Authorities identified the seven men charged in the case as Donovan Dunn, Raheem Jones, Tyrod Jackson, Ahmad Compton, Bernard Mickens, James Williams and Tahjay Wilson.
The charges against them include sexual assault, kidnapping, risk of injury to a minor and illegal sexual contact with a minor, among other counts.
Police reports indicate that after the initial sleepover, the girls were taken to Dunn’s residence in Hartford. Once there, Dunn and four other men sexually assaulted the victims, according to investigators.
Dunn cooperated with police during the investigation and provided details about how the contact began.
He told authorities he had seen one of the victims in his social media feed and connected with her through direct messaging.
Dunn claimed the girl told him she was 17 years old.
According to the victims’ statements to police, the group had been smoking marijuana and drinking alcohol.
The girls reported that once they became intoxicated, the situation devolved into what they described as a “free for all.”
They told investigators the sexual contact at Dunn’s home was not consensual.
Following the assaults at the Hartford residence, the men dropped the girls off at what they described as a “trap house” located at 25 Hillyer Street.
The girls were told the men would return to pick them up.
Instead of the original men returning, two different men arrived and took the girls to a Super 8 hotel on West Service Road.
Police documents state that both men sexually assaulted the victims in one of the hotel rooms.
After the assault, one of the men attempted to pay the girls.
Compton then arrived at the hotel, according to police records.
When the girls told him they were all 14 years old, he reportedly responded that they looked 16 and said they would be treated as such.
He then stated his intention to force them into prostitution.
Police documents indicate that Compton raped all three girls.
Following the assaults, he instructed them on hand signals to use with other men and explained their meanings.
He told them they would be provided with flip phones and taken to specific locations for prostitution activities.
One victim told police that Compton used his hands to trace a circle and told the three teenagers “that they were in his circle now.”
Throughout the three-day period, the girls were repeatedly given alcohol and drugs while being exploited.
The families of the three victims reported them missing, triggering a search effort.
The girls were eventually identified by witnesses who recognized them, leading to their rescue by family members.
Hartford State Attorney Sharmese Walcott addressed the severity of the case and its impact on the community.
“This is a difficult crime that not only impacted these young girls, but also their families and the community, and it’s a reminder that human trafficking does occur and it’s devastating when it does,” Walcott said.
