Woman confined, sexually assaulted for almost a week before escaping
Police say three teens and an adult are charged with allegedly confining a woman against her will in an apartment where she was repeatedly sexually assaulted for nearly a week before escaping.
Last Wednesday, a woman ran into a store in the 900 block of 5th Ave. S.W. claiming she had been forcibly confined in an apartment across the street for five days.
Investigators said the victim, in her late 20s, met one of the teenage suspects in the lobby of The York apartment building. The woman was led upstairs, where she was held against her will and assaulted.
“It wasn’t a random attack, it was a prearranged meeting,” said Det. Scott Mizibrocky of the police sex crimes unit, though he wouldn’t discuss what the purpose of the initial meeting was.
Over the course of the next several days, police said the three teens and adult — all of whom are now facing human trafficking charges — forced the victim to perform sexual acts with more than 10 men for money.
The money she received was then taken by the suspects.
Mizibrocky said after a few days, the woman’s alleged captors let their guard down and she was able to get out of the suite.
“She was able to slip out when these four people were asleep in the apartment,” he said, noting the victim didn’t suffer any serious injuries and is recovering from her ordeal.
“She’s OK and she’s being offered services.”
Soon after the woman made her escape, police descended on the apartment suite and arrested two underage suspects inside. Two other suspects, another teen and an adult woman, were subsequently identified but were not on the premises.
The youths were arrested at the scene but later released without charges.
Police have now issued arrest warrants for all four suspects, including two teenage males, 16 and 17, a 17-year-old female and a 29-year-old woman.
Because three of the suspects are underage, they can’t be identified under the Youth Criminal Justice Act.
The adult woman facing charges has been identified as Jessica Nyome Louise Vinje, of Calgary, who is wanted for human trafficking, sexual assault, unlawful confinement, voyeurism and assault.
Vinje is white, 5-foot-4, 150 lbs. with a medium build, red and purple hair, and brown eyes. She also has several tattoos including “MOB” on her left hand, “STACY” on her left shoulder, and “AR DL” with a star on her chest.
All three unidentified teen suspects are also facing similar charges, though the 16-year-old is wanted for pointing a firearm and uttering threats as well.
Mizibrocky said he hasn’t seen something like this before — an alleged abduction followed by forced prostitution — and the case is made even more unusual due to the fact that most of the suspects are minors.
“You don’t see too many young people involved in this sort of thing,” he said.
Anyone with information about any of the suspects, all believed to still be in the city, or the case is asked to call Calgary police at 403-266-1234 or Crime Stoppers anonymously at 1-800-222-8477.