Uber Driver Busts Sex Trafficking Operation In Sacramento

BYAngus Walker13.4K Views
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An Uber driver in Sacramento found himself as a witness to an illegal transaction involving a missing child earlier this week.

Keith Avila, a 34-year-old Uber driver in Sacramento, had to play crime-stopper once he suspected some illicit activity was taking place in his vehicle. Two women got in his car with a teenage girl and asked to be driven to a nearby Holiday Inn in Elk Grove. Avila was first concerned by the girl's dress, which he thought to be inappropriate for someone her age. He then overheard the women -- speaking as though he wasn't present -- instructing the girl about what to do once she got to the hotel. That's when he suspected that he had found himself as a witness to a sex trafficking operation. 

The women spoke of delivering the girl to a certain man at the hotel, where a monetary transaction was set to take place. Once he dropped them off, Avila drove to a safe area nearby, called police, and then went on Facebook Live to explain what had just happened in his car. 

He relayed the instructions that the women had apparently given to the girl:

"First thing you want to do is ask: Do you have any weapons? When you're hugging him, just ask, do you have any weapons? Pat him down. Pat him down while you're hugging him. Get the donation, first. Before you start touching him, going in there, get the donation first."

Police soon arrived at the scene and detained the two women, who turned out to be 25-year-old Destiny Pettway and 31-year-old Maria Westley. They then found the girl in a hotel room with a man who has been identified as 20-year-old Disney Vang.

The girl's identity has not been disclosed, though it has been revealed that she is 16 years old and that she is a runaway. Authorities are currently trying to locate her parents or guardians, and until then, she will reportedly remain in an "alternative housing situation." 

Pettway and Westley were both arrested and charged with pimping and pandering. Their bail has been set at $500,000. Vang was also arrested and charged with suspicions of sexual activity with a minor, though he posted bail and was released on Tuesday. 

Watch Avila's Facebook Live video below. 


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Uber Driver Busts Sex Trafficking Operation In Sacramento
About The Author
<b>Feature &amp; News Contributor</b> Brooklyn via Toronto writer and music enthusiast. Angus writes reviews, features, and lists for HNHH. While hip-hop is his muse, Angus also puts in work at an experimental dance label. In the evenings, he winds down to dub techno and Donna Summer.
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