SEX TRAFFICKING IN NEW YORK

Sex trafficking in New York is a frightening and deeply disturbing reality that continues to affect countless lives. Behind closed doors, vulnerable individuals are exploited, abused, and stripped of their freedom in a cycle of violence and control. 

At Levy Konigsberg, we are fighting for survivors of sex trafficking in New York, including survivors who experienced sex trafficking in hotels and motels, in residential treatment centers and in any other facility or location.

If you or someone you love has been a victim of sex trafficking in New York, you are not alone. Contact Levy Konigsberg today, and let us help you take the first step toward healing and holding those responsible accountable.

What is Sex Trafficking?

• Sex trafficking is a form of human trafficking where a person is forced to perform sexual acts by threats, coercion, or intimidation. If a child under the age of 18 is made to engage in for-profit sexual activity, regardless of the use of force or threatened coercion, the perpetrator is guilty of violating federal law. Any offender who partakes in sex trafficking by recruiting, sheltering, transporting, advertising, or soliciting victims to provide commercial sexual services is guilty of a federal crime. Perpetrators of sexual trafficking crimes often transport victims through commercial airports and other forms of public transportation to hotels, motels, salons and sporting events to engage in coerced sexual activity.

Legislation Provides Criminal and Civil Liability to Perpetrators

• Businesses and institutions that engage in sex trafficking are now subject to state and federal civil claims brought by victims of trafficking schemes. The Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000 (“Act”), which has been amended several times since its inception, provides that human trafficking is a crime under the Racketeering Influenced Corrupt Organizations (RICO) statute. The Act assigns criminal liability to perpetrators who receive sexual services from those forced into trafficking. It also authorizes victims to file civil claims against businesses and institutions that “knowingly benefit from their participation in what they knew or should have known” was sex trafficking activities.

Sex Trafficking in Hotels and Motels

• Hotels and motels across the country have become some of the most common places of abuse for survivors of human trafficking and sex trafficking, according to Homeland Security Investigations. The Polaris Project, a nonprofit fighting sex trafficking, reported that nearly 9,000 victims of sex trafficking identified hotels as the places where the trafficking and abuse occurred. Hotels and motels have a responsibility to identify and act upon red flags for sexual abuse and trafficking occurring in their rooms and on their property.

• Lawsuits targeting major hotel chains have proliferated in recent years, spurred by the expanded rights afforded under the Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act (TVPRA). Over the past two years, a wave of litigation has swept across the nation, with trafficking survivors taking legal action against prominent hotel brands like Hilton, Marriott, and Wyndham. These lawsuits allege that these hotels were either aware of or should have been aware of the presence of sex trafficking and exploitation on their premises, and that they profited from these illicit activities. Several of these legal battles have culminated in substantial financial settlements.

• When hotels are implicated in human trafficking, lawsuits may ensue, initiated either by the victims themselves or by governmental bodies. Typically, these legal actions assert that the hotel failed to implement adequate measures to prevent trafficking or neglected to report suspected instances to the authorities. Moreover, hotels may be held responsible for the damages inflicted upon trafficking victims, encompassing physical and psychological harm, lost income, and other associated losses.

• To combat human trafficking effectively, hotels are expected to establish robust anti-trafficking protocols, encompassing employee training to identify and report signs of trafficking, the implementation of monitoring systems to detect suspicious activities, and collaboration with law enforcement agencies during trafficking investigations. Moreover, hotels should have been cognizant of resources such as the End Child Prostitution and Trafficking (ECPAT-USA) guidelines and the Tourism Child-Protection Code of Conduct, as well as advisories from the Department of Homeland Security, which outline indicators of human trafficking, including signs of physical neglect, constant surveillance, and unusual requests for housekeeping services without room entry. Failure to adhere to these standards may render hotels liable for their complicity in facilitating trafficking.

• In many instances, the negligence exhibited by hotels appears deliberate, with knowledge of sex trafficking coupled with a deliberate disregard for addressing it. Numerous customer reviews of these establishments contain complaints from guests regarding overt prostitution and human trafficking activities transpiring within the premises, underscoring the willful blindness exhibited by these hotels.

Sex Trafficking in New York Residential Treatment Centers

• If a child under the age of 18 is made to engage in for-profit sexual activity, regardless of the use of force or threatened coercion, the perpetrator is guilty of violating federal law. Any offender who partakes in sex trafficking by recruiting, sheltering, transporting, advertising, or soliciting victims to provide commercial sexual services is guilty of a federal crime.

• Tragically, children in certain New York youth residential facilities were reportedly victims of the heinous crime of sex trafficking.

•  In December 2018, 19 people were charged with sex trafficking children from New York residential treatment facilities, including victims as young as 13. At least 15 victims were in the child welfare system, including nine who were residents of Hawthorne Cedar Knolls. One defendant, Hubert Dupigny, recruited a 16-year-old girl from Hawthorne who worked for him as a prostitute until he was arrested in December 2016, according to prosecutors. At that point, the girl reportedly went to work for his brother, Hensley Dupigny, who posted advertisements for her on Backpage.com and collected most of her earnings. A prosecutor reportedly said at a court hearing for Hensley Dupigny that the alleged conspiracy was “particularly egregious” because the defendants sought out minors in the social services system, often children with behavioral or emotional problems who had become wards of the state. The traffickers often reportedly approached victims as if they had a romantic interest in them and then preyed upon them.

History of Sex Trafficking in NY

Examples of sex trafficking in New York in recent years include:

• In June 2025, luxury real estate brokers Oren and Tal Alexander, along with Oren’s twin Alon, were charged with sex crimes against seven women, including sex trafficking.  They allegedly conspired in a sex-trafficking scheme since 2010. In December of 2024, they were charged with sex trafficking two women. In May, charges expanded to include six more victims, one underage. 

• In April 2025, it was reported that five individuals, Layquan Highsmith, Ronasia Robinson, Tyshawn Crawford, Richard Baker, and Eyecess Chapman, were charged with conspiracy, sex trafficking, sex trafficking of a child, promoting prostitution and related charges.  In October 2024, these individuals allegedly kidnapped a 19-year-old woman and forced her into prostitution in Brooklyn. They allegedly transported the victim to North Carolina and later back to New York, forcing her into prostitution in multiple cities, including Brooklyn and Albany/Troy. In mid-October, a 15-year-old girl who had been reported missing allegedly joined the group. These individuals allegedly took the two victims to North Carolina, stayed in hotels across three cities, recruited other young women for prostitution, and posted explicit photos of the victims in online ads.

• In December 2024, Matthew Halstead was charged with allegedly sexually assaulting and trafficking a 16-year-old boy for five months. Halstead allegedly sexually assaulted and trafficked the child multiple times. He also allegedly took photos and videos of the child involved in sexual acts with himself and other men. Halstead allegedly posted these on social media to find people willing to pay for sexual encounters with the child and to try to persuade other children to engage in sexual acts with him and others. Halstead allegedly shared sexually explicit images and videos of children, including toddlers, and discussed trading access to children with unknown individuals online.

• In September 2024, reports surfaced that Sean Combs (also known as “Puff Daddy,” “P. Diddy,” “PD,” or “Love”) was charged with racketeering conspiracy, sex trafficking, and transporting individuals for prostitution.  Combs allegedly sexually abused women by setting up and recording sensitive videos, which involved male sex workers. He allegedly used violence, intimidation, and threats, drugs, control over their finances, and sensitive recordings, to force the women to comply.

• In September 2022, two individuals, Destiny Lebron and Gil Iphael were charged with sex trafficking and other related crimes.  They allegedly brought the victim to a hotel and told her she had to either rob sex buyers or engage in prostitution. When she refused, they allegedly slapped, punched, and threatened her. They also forced her to take photos, which were posted online, and used images from her phone. Later that evening, several clients allegedly engaged in prostitution with the victim.

• In December 2019, G6 Hospitality, the parent company of Motel 6, was named in a group of federal sex-trafficking lawsuits. The lawsuits claimed that major hotel and motel chains allegedly ignored trafficking activities. One woman was allegedly forced into prostitution at the Motel 6 on Central Ave., in Colonie, New York, where she was beaten and given drugs and alcohol to keep her under control. G6 Hospitality was allegedly aware of repeated incidents of sex trafficking at its Motel 6 locations but failed to take proper action to stop it and continued to neglect necessary measures to prevent trafficking at its hotels.

• In October 2019, a $10 million lawsuit was filed against Wyndham Hotels & Resorts and Choice Hotels Corporation, accusing them of ignoring the obvious signs of sex trafficking at their properties.  The plaintiff alleged that she was sold for sex as a minor at a Howard Johnson in Jamaica, Queens, operated by Wyndham, and an Econo Lodge in the Bronx, operated by Choice Hotels.  The lawsuit alleged there was constant foot traffic in and out of the rooms, along with numerous used condoms left behind, which should have been clear signs of illegal activity. It also alleged that staff at both motels failed to act, ignoring warning signs such as visible physical abuse, poor hygiene, lack of luggage, submissive behavior, and inappropriate clothing. Instead of contacting law enforcement, the staff allegedly allowed the abuse to continue.

Do I Have a Case?

You may have grounds to file a civil legal action if you were a victim of sex trafficking.

As civil claims, these cases are separate from any criminal proceedings that may arise from abuse and focus instead on holding institutions liable for damages. This means you may still have a claim even if:

• Your abuser is no longer alive.
• Your abuser was never charged with or convicted of a crime.

Recoverable Damages in Sexual Abuse Claims

In addition to providing accountability and a sense of justice, civil sex abuse lawsuits allow survivors to recover financial compensation for their damages, which may include:

• Past medical and mental health expenses
• Future mental health expenses, including therapy, medications, etc.
• Pain and suffering
• Emotional anguish and psychological harm
• Lost income
• Other economic and non-economic damages

Sex Trafficking Statute of Limitations

A statute of limitations sets deadlines for victims to bring claims against their abuser or entities responsible for the abuse. On September 16, 2022, federal legislation entitled “The Eliminating Limits to Justice for Child Sex Abuse Victims Act of 2022” was enacted.  The Act eliminates the statute of limitations for a minor victim of certain federal human trafficking or sex offenses.  Under prior law, the statute of limitations for these claims was no later than 10 years after the date on which the plaintiff reasonably discovers the violation or injury, whichever occurs later, that forms the basis for the claim, or no later than 10 years after the date on which the victim reaches 18 years of age.  While the Act took effect on September 16, 2022, it does not revive claims that would have already been barred as of September 15, 2022 by the prior statute of limitations.  The Act only applies to claims or actions not previously barred that arise after September 16, 2022.  

To understand the statute of limitations for your case, it's essential to consult with an experienced lawyer. At Levy Konigsberg, our attorneys specialize in handling both childhood sexual abuse cases and adult sexual abuse cases. We can assess the merits of your potential case and determine how the statute of limitations specifically applies to the facts of your case.

Sex trafficking is a horrifying and inhumane crime that continues to plague communities in New York. It robs individuals of their dignity, freedom, and safety, leaving behind a trail of pain and devastation. 

At Levy Konigsberg, we are here to help survivors of sex trafficking navigate their path to justice and healing.