Ex-masseur found guilty of sex trafficking

Houston man faces life in prison for cases exploiting teen boys

A former Houston massage therapist is facing a possible life sentence this fall for sex trafficking a series of teenage boys, including one who traveled with him to London where, the victim told jurors, he expected to be hired out for sexually explicit massages during the 2012 Summer Olympics.

A federal jury in Houston quickly convicted Jason Daniel Gandy on all counts last Monday after a weeklong trial involving four young men. He was found guilty of all charges he was facing including sex trafficking, sexual exploitation and transportation of minors, making sexually explicit images and transporting child pornography. Gandy’s lawyer, Sean Buckley, said he was disappointed with the verdict and planned to appeal.

“The government simply didn’t prove its case beyond a reasonable doubt as to any of the counts,” Buckley said. “All the counts rested on the testimony of someone who had a motive to cooperate with the government and assist the prosecutors in convicting Mr. Gandy.”

Buckley noted that one of the victims has a 2018 federal civil suit pending against Gandy, seeking damages for emotional harm, under a civil provision that protects child victims of sex trafficking. The victim’s lawyer for that lawsuit did not respond immediately to a request for comment. The U.S. Attorney’s Office did not respond to inquiries other than to confirm the verdict.

On the final day of trial, Gandy, 41, could be seen with a diagonal cut on his neck that required multiple stitches. His lawyer declined to comment about the injury or procedure that precipitated the stitches.

Gandy spent six years leading up to the trial in federal custody after a magistrate judge determined he was a serious flight risk and posed a threat to victims and other minors. He had traveled out of the U.S. at least 45 times in three years and possessed portable job skills. The judge ruled he was a danger to the community.

Gandy’s attorney said the sixyear delay was “excessive and unjustified” and the government should not have been allowed to draw out the initial case while investigators searched for additional victims.

The Chronicle does not identify victims of sexual exploitation or trafficking.

The illicit operation, which witnesses said dated to 2005, came to light when Gandy was stopped at Heathrow Airport in 2012 in London by officials suspicious about why he was traveling with a 15-year-old boy to whom he was not related.

British authorities sent the pair on separate flights back to Houston, where Homeland Security officers questioned them. A forensic examiner discovered 50 lewd photographs on a laptop Gandy had given to the boy to transport back to the U.S., including an image showing a young man’s genitals, according to testimony.

Gandy, a licensed massage therapist, ran a business out of his home, providing treatments for male clientele. The young man who traveled to London with him as a minor told jurors he was hired to provide socalled “happy ending” massages and customers were invited to touch his genitals.

A wider investigation into Gandy’s conduct resulted in expanded charges related to three other young men who were 15, 16 and 17 when they participated in Gandy’s business between 2005 and 2007. All four were gay or coming to terms with their sexuality when Gandy befriended them and exploited them for profit, according to witness testimony.

The men told the jury that Gandy groomed them, let them stay at his home, had sex with them and then asked them to stand shirtless or in their underwear during the massages, let the clients touch them or in some instances perform sex acts for customers.

Gandy’s lawyer argued that he ran a legitimate business and that the four young men who worked for him providing private massages were never forced or coerced to participate in any sexual conduct with clients.

Sentencing is set for Oct. 25.