Man forced women into prostitution around eastern US, prosecutors say. Then one escaped
He ordered the women to have sex for money — and to meet a financial quota he set, federal prosecutors say.
He wouldn’t even let them eat or sleep without his permission.
But after one woman escaped in Fayetteville, North Carolina and contacted police, the man’s plans were done.
Samuel Dewayne Doolittle, 33, will serve 11 years in prison after pleading guilty to “interstate transportation for prostitution and use of the internet to promote an unlawful business enterprise, namely, prostitution,” according to the Department of Justice. He originally faced seven charges.
Police arrested Doolittle in June 2016, according to federal prosecutors.
Prosecutors say Doolittle used “violence, emotional abuse, and manipulation” to force at least two women to have sex for money. “Among other tactics, Doolittle would not let victims eat or sleep without his permission, forced them to meet financial quotas, and threatened them if they disobeyed him,” according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Raleigh.
Doolittle is from Erie, Pennsylvania, according to federal prosecutors.
“Ultimately one victim fled and contacted law enforcement while being prostituted in Fayetteville, North Carolina,” prosecutors said.
In a press release, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of North Carolina Robert Higdon said, “The trafficking of human beings — and make no mistake, that is exactly what this was — is one of the most outrageous and shocking crimes we prosecute.”
“The women that this defendant trafficked were terrorized and victimized day after day after day as he manipulated them through violence, emotional abuse and by depriving them of any independent means of support. And the eleven year sentence imposed by the Court reflects the awful nature of this crime,” Higdon said.
He added, “Sadly, there are many of these cases and we are committed to aggressive investigation and prosecution wherever we find them.”
This story was originally published February 6, 2019 at 12:03 PM.
