Social workers and police officers in Maryland, Virginia, and the District of Columbia DC have detected at least nine child prostitution rings since Most of these networks β some of which have already been dismantled β are run by the Mara Salvatrucha, or MS The gang and other human traffickers recruit young Central Americans who have recently arrived to the US or those who have run away from their families. Employees of social services in the area believe youth who have recently fled the Northern Triangle El Salvador, Honduras, Guatemala , many of whom have experienced sexual abuse in their home country, are the most vulnerable.
Marcos, the father of Vanessa, arrived at the police station in Fairfax County, Virginia, on November 9, , to report the disappearance of his daughter. At the end of a long interview, Marcos, who is Salvadoran, confessed that his daughter had run away from home after several domestic disputes, and that he had a strong suspicion of where she had gone: Before handing Vanessa over to her father, the Fairfax police interviewed her.
What the young teenager β Vanessa was just 14 at the time β told police is a story that goes far beyond the parameters of an adolescent escape. This is the story of one of the child prostitution rings run by the MS13 in the DC metropolitan area. It was during this time that Vanessa met Rivas in a park.
She was just He obtained the clients by telephone, arranged the meetings, and brought the girls to the houses of other gang members, individuals or motel rooms in the DC area. Two additional networks were later discovered. The Crazy Boy network, according to testimonies from two of the girls he trafficked, was small: A convenience store in Falls Church, Virginia, allegedly used as a meeting place by MS13 to run prostitution rings. Following the sentences of Crazy Boy and Murder there has been little news about the participation of MS13 leaders involved in child prostitution rings.
Nevertheless, the problem remains: Child prostitution rings run by gang members, or criminals associated with gangs, ensnare Central American youth that arrive to the United States with a history of sexual abuse or who have run away from home.
