COLUMBUS – Two men have been found guilty of operating a human trafficking ring in central Ohio, using narcotics to control dozens of women authorities say were forced into prostitution.
Curtis Gossett and Jeffrey Bagley were convicted and sentenced to 13 years and 10 years in prison, respectively, and both will be required to register as Tier II Sex Offenders, Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost, Franklin County Prosecutor Ron O’Brien and Columbus Police Chief Thomas Quinlan announced Friday.
“The buyers of commercial sex are often sanctioning and committing rape. The victims of sex trafficking are not willing participants. The victims are compelled through manipulation to engage in sex acts they may not otherwise participate in,” said Central Ohio Human Trafficking Task Force director Sgt. Mark Rapp.
The convictions were the result of a 17-month investigation by the task force that began in March 2016, when a woman walked into Columbus Police headquarters and told an officer working the information desk that she was a heroin addict and had been working as a prostitute for Gossett.
Authorities said Gossett, Bagley and others recruited women from the streets and jails, gave them drugs and forced them to engage in commercial sex in Columbus.