The Times Herald (Norristown, PA)
Sex trafficking charges levied
Federal indictments handed down against two men accused of coercing a California woman into prostitution in King of Prussia
PHILADELPHIA » In a case first announced last year, two men who lured a victim from California to the East Coast with false promises of easy money – and then forced her into prostitution against her will, including instances at a King of Prussia hotel – have been indicted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Philadelphia.
Kashamba John, 30, and Tyler Bachtel, 34, were indicted Thursday by U.S. Attorney William M. McSwain for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania for sex trafficking by means of force, fraud and coercion. John also was charged with transporting an individual in interstate commerce with the intent that the individual engage in prostitution.
“This is a horrendous case where a young woman was lured from California, forced into prostitution in Pennsylvania, and held against her will by these individuals,” said state Attorney General Josh Shapiro in a press release. “We prosecuted charges originally against both men. We have a great partnership with U.S. Attorney McSwain, and I have total confidence he and his team will hold these criminals accountable for human trafficking and obtain justice for this victim.”
If convicted of sex trafficking, each defendant faces a mandatory minimum of 15 years in prison, up to a possible sentence of life imprisonment and a $250,000 fine. On the additional count against John, he faces a maximum of 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine.
“The victims of sex trafficking pay a price that lasts a lifetime,” said McSwain, who took over the Philadelphia U.S. Attorney’s Office earlier this year. “We have to do everything possible to find the offenders and bring them to justice.”
The charges against John and Bachtel stem from a joint investigation by the Office of Attorney General, Pennsylvania State Police, Upper Merion Police and Homeland Security. The investigation was submitted to a statewide grand jury, which determined John ran a human trafficking ring that used the victim, a 21-year-old woman recruited from California, flown to the East Coast, held against her will and forced into prostitution in hotels in Pennsylvania, Georgia and North Carolina. Bachtel is currently a fugitive. Anyone with information on his whereabouts should contact local law enforcement or the ICE tip line at 866-DHS-2-ICE.
In September, a grand jury indicted the two men and a woman accused of running a sex-trafficking operation after detectives set up a meeting with one of their victims at hotel in Upper Merion.
The investigation began on Oct. 5, 2016, when a detective with the Upper Merion Police Department’s Special Investigation Unit was working on a case involving potential prostitution solicited through the escort section of the website Backpage.
The detective responded to an ad on the site and, via texts, discussed particulars about setting up a meet. A meeting was arranged at the Hampton Inn, 530 West DeKalb Pike, and the detective later received a phone call from a woman believed to be Somerville, who asked questions that seemed to be attempting to screen for law enforcement officials, according to the criminal complaint.
When investigators arrived at the hotel room — which surveillance photos reportedly showed John checking into earlier in the day —they encountered the victim, identified themselves as law enforcement officers and offered their assistance.
The victim refused their help, but reportedly told them that the people she was working for were holding her identification.
Later that afternoon, when an Uber driver was sent to pick the victim up, she reportedly told the driver she needed to stop and get a money order.
When the driver stopped and the witness was purchasing the order, the man who arranged the pickup, who authorities believe was John, called the driver and asked if police were following them.
Upon the victim’s return to the car, the driver informed her of the phone call, and as they were heading toward Philadelphia on Route 76, the victim reportedly became hysterical and asked to be taken to police.
The driver saw a state trooper on the side of the road and took the victim to him.
In an interview with state police, Bachtel reportedly admitted to recruiting the victim to “work” for John and arranged for her initial flight to Atlanta in an attempt to repay a debt he owed him.