NORFOLK, Va. — An investigation performed by Homeland Safety Investigations (HSI) Norfolk and the Virginia Seaside Police Division resulted within the conviction of a 40-year-old Portsmouth man for intercourse trafficking and manufacturing of kid sexual abuse materials. On April 6, a federal jury convicted Pierre De Romeo Smith of seven prices, together with intercourse trafficking, manufacturing of kid pornography, possession with intent to distribute managed substances and illegal possession of a firearm.
In accordance with the HSI Norfolk investigation, Smith met his 16-year-old sufferer the identical day he took sexually specific and suggestive images of her, together with some the place she posed with the muzzle of a shotgun in her mouth.
“Pierre De Romeo Smith’s crimes are disturbing,” mentioned HSI Washington, D.C. Particular Agent in Cost Derek W. Gordon. “Not solely did he victimize a 16-year-old lady, however he threatened her with a firearm and compelled her to commit sexual acts on strangers for his personal monetary achieve. HSI will proceed to collaborate with our native regulation enforcement companions to make sure deviant predators like Smith can’t prey on the communities that we defend.”
Smith posted the images of the sufferer on a industrial intercourse web site, promoting her providers for industrial intercourse. For the next three weeks, Smith continued to make her out there for industrial intercourse — with as many as 30 “dates” an evening — all through the Hampton Roads space. He threatened her with a firearm, gave her amphetamines to maintain her awake, and confiscated the cash she earned from her dates.
On Might 19, 2022, the Virginia Seaside Police Division performed an undercover industrial intercourse operation at a resort in Virginia Seaside the place they encountered Smith’s 16-year-old sufferer.
When interviewing her on the resort, detectives noticed a textual content message on her cellphone from the Smith stating that he was there. Authorities noticed Smith arriving on the resort’s parking storage and arrested him. Authorities discovered a number of managed substances in his car, together with fentanyl, cocaine and methamphetamine, and a Glock handgun, which the defendant was prohibited from possessing as a convicted felon.
Smith faces a compulsory minimal penalty of 15 years and a most sentence of life in federal jail. He’s scheduled for sentencing Aug. 9.
This investigation was performed by HSI Norfolk and the Virginia Seaside Police Division with important help from the U.S. Lawyer’s Workplace for the Japanese District of Virginia.
This case was investigated by the Hampton Roads Human Trafficking Process Drive, a collaboration between federal, state and native regulation enforcement and prosecutors, in addition to nongovernmental organizations, working collectively to fight human trafficking within the Hampton Roads area.
This case was introduced as a part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to fight the rising epidemic of kid sexual exploitation and abuse, launched in Might 2006 by the Division of Justice. Undertaking Secure Childhood marshals federal, state, and native assets to higher find, apprehend, and prosecute people who exploit kids through the web, in addition to to determine and rescue victims.
Anybody with data concerning the sexual exploitation of kids is inspired to offer their tricks to regulation enforcement. HSI has a nationwide tip line to report crime by calling 866-DHS-2423 (866-347-2423).
HSI is the principal investigative arm of the U.S. Division of Homeland Safety (DHS), liable for investigating transnational crime and threats, particularly these legal organizations that exploit the worldwide infrastructure by way of which worldwide commerce, journey, and finance transfer. HSI’s workforce of over 10,400 staff consists of greater than 7,100 particular brokers assigned to 220 cities all through the US, and 80 abroad areas in 53 nations. HSI’s worldwide presence represents DHS’s largest investigative regulation enforcement presence overseas and one of many largest worldwide footprints in U.S. regulation enforcement.