Stockton, California - Angel Jesus Sanchez-Manriquez, 22, of Stockton, was sentenced Tuesday by U.S. District Judge Troy L. Nunley to 11 years and three months in prison for sex trafficking of a child, Acting U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced.
According to court documents, between October and December 2020, Sanchez-Manriquez posted approximately 70 advertisements on a website, each of which contained photos of a 16‑year-old victim, advertising the victim’s availability to perform commercial sex acts. Sanchez-Manriquez referred to the victim as his “Snow Bunny.”
Sanchez-Manriquez rented motel rooms in and around the Stockton area in which the victim performed commercial sex acts. After executing search warrants, law enforcement agents learned that Sanchez-Manriquez also used his cellphone to take photographs and record videos of the victim engaged in sex acts with adults, including Sanchez-Manriquez.
“The pop-culture imagery of sex work is a far cry from the realities of human trafficking cases like these. Every day, adults and minors are marketed and sold to paying customers by exploiters who control and profit from every aspect of the illegal transactions,” said Special Agent in Charge Sean Ragan of the FBI Sacramento Field Office. “Our agents are deeply committed to working tirelessly with our local, state, and federal partners to recover victims of human trafficking and ensure whose who exploit them face justice. They work closely with victim services specialists to ensure victims are afforded an opportunity to break free from the cycle of exploitation and abuse that is all too common in these cases. No person should ever be trafficked. Please call the National Human Trafficking Hotline at 1(888) 373-7888 if you or someone you know needs help.”
This case was the product of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Brian A. Fogerty and Sam Stefanki prosecuted the case.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute those who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc. Click on the “resources” tab for information about internet safety education.
