Sacramento man accused of recruiting girl for prostitution in sex trafficking case
A 41-year-old Sacramento man has been arrested after a federal grand jury indicted him on a charge of sex trafficking a girl prosecutors say he recruited into prostitution.
The grand jury indicted Michael Anthony Butler Jr., also known as “Spice916” and “Spice,” charging him with sex trafficking of a child, according to the indictment filed Oct. 1 in U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of California.
The indictment was ordered sealed by the court until Butler’s arrest on Tuesday, according to a news release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Sacramento.
Federal prosecutors said Butler recruited, harbored and transported the underage victim, who is identified in the charging documents as “Jane Doe 1.” The victim’s age was not included in the news release or the indictment.
Butler allegedly recruited the girl to engage in prostitution knowing she was younger than 18 years old, and prosecutors say he also advertised the girl’s prostitution activity.
If Butler is convicted, he could face 10 years to life in federal prison, along with a $250,000 fine, the U.S. Attorney’s Office said. The indictment indicated that if Butler is convicted, he would have to forfeit any property or items used to commit the alleged crime, including an iPhone, a Canon digital camera and a Dell laptop computer.
The case against Butler was the result of an investigation by the FBI and the Yuba City Police Department with help from the Yuba County District Attorney’s Office.
