A Carson man who authorities say forced multiple teenage girls into prostitution has pleaded no contest to reduced charges as part of a plea agreement with the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s office.
As part of the plea deal, Mycal Brandon Ruff pleaded no contest to two counts of human trafficking of a minor for a commercial sex act and was sentenced to eight years in state prison, according to the DA’s office.
Court records show Ruff’s case was getting ready for trial when he entered the no-contest plea. He was previously charged with three counts of human trafficking of a minor for a commercial sex act, which could have carried a penalty of more than 17 years in prison if he was convicted by jurors.
Police alleged Ruff trafficked three girls who went missing in Long Beach, San Bernardino and Hemet.
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Long Beach police said they began investigating him in 2020 when officers found a teenager working as a prostitute near Veterans Park. Detectives met with the teenager who gave them permission to search her phone, authorities said.
In the phone, detectives found information that led them to two more teenagers being trafficked, authorities said.
It’s not clear how the teens, whose ages ranged from 15 to 17, came in contact with Ruff. But the three of them told detectives that Ruff acted as their pimp and forced them to work as prostitutes for several months, police said.
Another woman, identified by police as Dezere Romero, helped Ruff manage the girls, authorities said.
Ruff and Romero were arrested in September 2020 on suspicion of human trafficking, police said.
Romero previously pleaded not guilty to multiple counts of human trafficking a minor for a commercial sex act. She is due back in court on March 22, court records show.