DALLAS — A Dallas man has pleaded guilty this week to running a sex trafficking ring for nearly two decades, according to federal officials.
Anthony Johnson, 45, pleaded guilty on May 10 to conspiracy to commit sex trafficking through force, fraud, and coercion, and sex trafficking.
“Like Tremont Blakemore, a north Texas trafficker who pleaded guilty just two weeks ago, Anthony Johnson systematically tormented his victims, convincing them they had no choice but to bend to his will,” said U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Texas Chad E. Meacham. “It’s difficult to fathom that human trafficking happens on the streets of Dallas, but it does, every day. If you or someone you know is being victimized, reach out for help. As impossible as it may seem in the moment, there is a way out.”
Johnson, aka “Macc Bucc,” admitted he forced numerous women to engage in commercial sex acts and turn the proceeds over to him. Details from Johnson's plea paper stated that he set "quotas," compelled the women to work for hours on end, and brutally beat them with an extension cord when they came up short, “disrespected” him, or did not follow his rules.
“Those attempting to profit from commercial sex through the viciousness of human trafficking are causing significant harm in our communities,” said Acting Special Agent in Charge of HSI Dallas Christopher Miller. “This defendant’s guilty plea moves one step closer to finding justice for the victims he brutalized and manipulated.”
The plea papers also stated that Johnson required the women to steal from commercial sex customers by searching through customers’ pockets for cash or jewelry and check their cars for valuables.
One of Johnson's victims, identified in court documents as "Adult Victim 7" (AV7), said she was recruited by Johnson and his second-in-command, Demetrice Deckard, took her to Harry Hines to teach her how to solicit sex from people. Federal officials said AV7 was forced to travel cross-country to engage in commercial sex and was routinely beaten when she tried to leave.
Prosecutors said that while Johnson was in jail, he obtained a contraband cell phone and used it to continue running his sex trafficking operation.
The prosecutors said text messages from the cell phone showed Johnson continued to tell women where to go, which hotels to use, how to steal from customers, and when they could be done for the night. He also told the women to send him videos of themselves having sex with customers, officials said.
It wasn't the first time he'd run the sex trafficking operation from behind bars, either. According to his plea papers, Johnson admitted to running his trafficking operation from behind bars from 2014 to 2019, where he was serving time for a conviction on a charge of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon.
Deckard pleaded guilty in April to conspiracy to engage in trafficking through force, fraud, and coercion and faces up to life in federal prison.
Another co-defendant, Ashley Neice, pled guilty to conspiracy to obstruct an official proceeding and admitted to conspiring with Johnson to contact a victim in the criminal case in order to tell her not to cooperate with law enforcement, federal officials said.
Both Johnson and Deckard face up to life in federal prison. Neice faces up to 20 years in federal prison.
