LOS ANGELES (CNS) - A South Los Angeles man was found guilty Monday of nine felonies for recruiting and enticing teenage girls to work for him as prostitutes.
Donavin Bradford, 31, was found guilty of one count of conspiracy to commit sex trafficking with a minor, three counts of sex trafficking of a minor, three counts of sexual exploitation of a minor for the purpose of producing a sexually explicit visual depiction, one count of possession of child pornography, and one count of sex trafficking through threats of force, fraud, or coercion, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office.
From the summer of 2021 to February 2022, Bradford was accused of conspiring with Layla Valdivia, 23, of Ventura, to cause one of the minor victims -- a then-15-year-old girl -- to be used for prostitution. As the victim's pimp, Bradford expected the girl to earn $1,000 per night and give it to him, evidence showed.
Bradford and Valdivia advertised the girl for commercial sex work on various websites, and "johns" who responded to the ads were directed to various hotels and motels where they engaged in paid sex acts with the victim. Sometimes the girl would be required to perform sex acts with Valdivia and a client together, prosecutors said.
Bradford assaulted the girl when she tried to stop working for him on two separate occasions, according to prosecutors. He also recorded himself engaging in sex acts on two separate occasions with her, according to evidence presented during the five-day jury trial in Los Angeles federal court.
From March 2021 to November 2021, Bradford was accused of recruiting and enticing two other girls -- ages 16 and 17 -- to engage in commercial sex activity. From May 2021 to August 2022, Bradford also found and sex trafficked an adult victim through threats of force, fraud or coercion, including multiple instances of violence, according to the evidence.
Bradford and Valdivia have been in federal custody since last August.
U.S. District Judge John Kronstadt scheduled an Aug. 17 sentencing hearing, at which time Bradford will face between 15 years and life in federal prison, prosecutors noted.
Valdivia pleaded guilty in December to one count each of conspiracy to commit sex trafficking of a minor and sex trafficking of a minor. Her sentencing hearing is scheduled for May 4, at which time she will face between 10 years and life imprisonment.
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