YORK COUNTY, Pa. — A 54-year-old York man will serve up to 30 years in prison after being sentenced in U.S. Middle District Court on sex trafficking charges, U.S. Attorney Bruce D. Brandler said Monday.
Robert Lee "Stone" Johnson knowingly recruited and enticed multiple victims into engaging in commercial sex acts in multiple York County motels between November 2015 and August 2016, Brandler said.
Most of the victims worked on an “all in” basis, meaning they would give all of the money they earned to Johnson in exchange for having basic living expenses supplied, Brandler said.
"They relied on Johnson for food and clothing and, most significantly, heroin to support their addictions," Brandler said.
Johnson was often violent, threatened the victims and physically assaulted them if they tried to keep any money or if they were “disrespectful," according to Brandler.
Johnson would force the victims to watch him beat someone to serve as a warning on what would happen to them if they crossed him, Brandler said.
As another method of threatening and forcing the victims was to withholding heroin from them until they reached a quota of "tricks," Brandler added.
The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Scott Ford and retired Assistant U.S. Attorney James Clancy prosecuted the case.
