Elyria man gets life term in sex trafficking case

Associated Press

CLEVELAND

An Elyria man accused of prostituting four women and helping to keep them addicted to drugs was sentenced Thursday to life in prison.

A federal jury convicted Jeremy Mack, 38, in February on charges that included conspiracy to commit sex trafficking, sex trafficking of a minor, drug trafficking and witness tampering.

Mack previously served nine years on drug trafficking convictions before being released from federal prison in 2012.

FBI and Elyria police investigators say that in late 2012 and for just over three months in 2013, Mack and an Avon Lake woman forced the women, including a 16-year-old, to work as prostitutes in exchange for drug money they owed Mack. The women were also forced to live in his house, authorities say.

One of the women told investigators she was afraid to leave Mack’s house because he knew where her family lived.

U.S. Attorney for Northern Ohio Steven Dettelbach told The Associated Press on Thursday that Mack’s conduct was outrageous.

“He richly deserves to spend the rest of his life behind bars so he can’t hurt any more people,” Dettelbach said.

Dettelbach praised Mack’s victims for having the courage to testify against him.

Mack’s attorney, Lawrence Whitney, declined to comment on the sentence but said, “There’s a lot of complex issues in the trial that will be aired out in the court of appeals.”