A 33-year-old sex trafficker will be sentenced in October for terrorizing a woman he forced to work as a prostitute after meeting her through Facebook.
According to court records, he beat her, broke her nose and forced her to have his nickname “Classified” tattooed on her face.
Lawrence T. Gunn Jr., whose last known residence was in Woodland Hills, pleaded guilty to one count of sex trafficking by force, fraud or coercion and is facing a sentencing hearing on Oct. 2, according to Thom Mrozek of the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
Gunn faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 15 years in prison and could get life, Mrozek said Wednesday after Tuesday’s conviction.
Prosecutors say Gunn, who advertised the victim’s services in an online publication and goes by the nickname “Classified,” forced the woman to get a facial tattoo of his moniker.
Gunn admitted to using force, threats of force, fraud and/or coercion to compel the woman to engage in commercial sex acts between May 2015 and late February 2016, Mrozek said.
Gunn took all of the proceeds from the woman’s activities and beat her if she tried to leave or keep any of the money for herself, once breaking her nose, according to his plea agreement.
Gunn also threatened to kill the woman if she tried to leave him, according to Mrozek, who said Gunn will be required to register as a sex offender once he completes his prison term.
— City News Service