Jacksonville Man Sex Trafficked Kids as Young as 13 in Tyler

We will do anything to protect our kids. Doesn't matter if they're ours or somebody else's, if a child or teen is in trouble, we will jump in to protect them if they are in danger. Sometimes, though, despite our best efforts, kids will get themselves into a bad situation. This happened to some teens in Jacksonville, Texas who encountered a truly evil individual and tricked them into being a part of his illegal business. Thankfully, this man now faces life in prison for his illegal activities, along with his accomplices, who kept the illegal business going.

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Desnique Deshawn Herndon

Desnique Deshawn Herndon, I believe, is an evil individual. He has been convicted of six counts of sex trafficking of children and one count of conspiracy to commit sex trafficking of children. He now faces life in federal prison for these convictions. This all started in 2019 when Herndon began recruiting teen girls to perform sex acts for money. To get these young girls, he promised great riches for the girls to be a part of his business. He would then take them to hotels in Tyler to carry out these sex acts for money.

Herndon recruited the girls by social media, deceived them by promising riches, and placed them in hotels in the Tyler area. - U.S. Attorney's Office, Eastern District of Texas

Desnique Deshawn Herndon - Gregg County Jail

What Herdon and His Conspirators Did After His Arrest is Even More Appalling

Following Herdon's arrest for his sex trafficking business, his co-conspirators, Malcolm Kadeem Roberts, Patrick Lamont Cross, Jr. and Tavarus D. Watkins kept the business going to pay for Herdon's bond. Those three men pleaded guilty to other charges in this case; Roberts for conspiracy to commit sex trafficking of children and aggravated sexual assault of a child in Smith County; Cross for conspiracy to commit sex trafficking of children; and Watkins for interstate transport of a minor for illegal sexual activity (CBS 19).

The victims obviously have not been identified because of the nature of the crimes and because they are minors. The youngest of the victims, however, is 13 years old. 13! Evil is always around the corner. Parents, uncles, aunts, grandparents, be observant of what your kids are doing on social media. Predators like this can easily get ahold of them.

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