PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — Law enforcement officials hope the recent human trafficking and kidnapping conviction of a Philadelphia man will help encourage other victims to call them. A woman's harrowing escape from a home in Kensington has put one predator behind bars, and four other women on the road to recovery.
Last summer a woman pushed through the back door of a rowhome in Kensington, climbed a barbed wire fence, and ran to Philly police for help — she was one of five women being held and controlled by 50-year-old Richard Collins, says Special Victims Detective Kathryn Gordon.
"One of our victims testified that she took approximately 1,000 to 2,000 dates and up to 15 or 16 men a day," she said. "If he chose to sexually assault them and they were not willing participants, we had severe assaults that occurred as well."
Authorities say Collins used drugs and violence to control the women, all of whom were between the ages of 20 and 28.
"Food was also withheld from our victims," said Gordon, one of the lead investigators on the case. "They were wholly dependent upon this man."
Last summer, when one of the women escaped, she led police to the rest of the women. Unfortunately, police said, that woman was later killed in an unrelated domestic violence murder. The other four women are now in recovery, trying to get their lives back on track.
A jury convicted Collins last week of trafficking, rape, involuntary servitude and assault.
One of our victims actually called and said, after she testified, that was the first night she had slept in years.
Officials hope their story encourages other possible victims to come forward.
Collins had a previous criminal record, authorities say, dating back to 1997, with charges and convictions ranging from drug possession to indecent assault.
He is set to be sentenced on Oct. 18 and could spend the rest of his life in prison.
UPDATE:
In October 2019, Richard Collins was sentenced to 10 to 20 years in prison, with $25,000 in restitution. He appealed to the higher courts, and the Supreme Court denied his appeal in November 2022.