Today, the Justice Department announced that Backpage's co-founder and CEO, Carl Ferrer, 57, of Frisco, Texas, has pleaded guilty to conspiracy to facilitate prostitution using a facility in interstate or foreign commerce and to engage in money laundering.
Several Backpage-related corporate entities, including Backpage.com LLC, have entered guilty pleas to conspiracy to engage in money laundering.
"Backpage has earned hundreds of millions of dollars from facilitating prostitution and sex trafficking, placing profits over the well-being and safety of the many thousands of women and children who were victimized by its practices," said First Assistant U.S. Attorney Elizabeth A. Strange.
Ferrer further admitted that he conspired with other Backpage principals to find ways to knowingly facilitate the state-law prostitution crimes being committed by Backpage's customers.
Ferrer's plea agreement also requires him to take all steps within his power to immediately shut down the Backpage website, including providing technical assistance to the United States to effectuate the shutdown, and to take all steps within his power to forfeit to the United States all corporate assets and other property owned or controlled by various Backpage-related entities.
Ferrer's plea agreement, and the corporate plea agreements, also consent to the forfeiture of certain assets and items of property, including various domain names associated with the Backpage website.
The effort to seize Backpage was led by the Justice Department's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section and the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Arizona, with significant support from the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Central District of California, the office of the California Attorney General, and the office of the Texas Attorney General.
https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/backpage-s-co-founder-and-ceo-well-several-backpage-related-corporate-entities-enter-guilty
Several Backpage-related corporate entities, including Backpage.com LLC, have entered guilty pleas to conspiracy to engage in money laundering.
"Backpage has earned hundreds of millions of dollars from facilitating prostitution and sex trafficking, placing profits over the well-being and safety of the many thousands of women and children who were victimized by its practices," said First Assistant U.S. Attorney Elizabeth A. Strange.
Ferrer further admitted that he conspired with other Backpage principals to find ways to knowingly facilitate the state-law prostitution crimes being committed by Backpage's customers.
Ferrer's plea agreement also requires him to take all steps within his power to immediately shut down the Backpage website, including providing technical assistance to the United States to effectuate the shutdown, and to take all steps within his power to forfeit to the United States all corporate assets and other property owned or controlled by various Backpage-related entities.
Ferrer's plea agreement, and the corporate plea agreements, also consent to the forfeiture of certain assets and items of property, including various domain names associated with the Backpage website.
The effort to seize Backpage was led by the Justice Department's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section and the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Arizona, with significant support from the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Central District of California, the office of the California Attorney General, and the office of the Texas Attorney General.
https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/backpage-s-co-founder-and-ceo-well-several-backpage-related-corporate-entities-enter-guilty
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