Playing the hero led to the arrest of an Atlanta drag personality who, after appearing on television claiming he helped authorities nab his roommate for human trafficking, was identified by a minor victim, according to the Douglas County Sheriff's Office.
Christopher Thomas Lynch, better known to local gay audiences as Pasha Nicole, is charged with human trafficking of a minor for sexual servitude, two counts of sexual exploitation of a child, pandering by compulsion and possession of drug related objects, Chief Deputy Sheriff Stan Copeland told the AJC.
His roommate, Steven Donald Lemery, 35, is charged with five counts of aggravated child molestation, two counts of human trafficking, child molestation, enticing a child for indecent purposes and pandering by compulsion. Lemery, who danced under the name Steven Lang at B.J. Rooster's on Cheshire Bridge Road, was targeted by investigators in January after a victim from Alabama alerted authorities, Copeland said.
"Most of the victims were runaways or easy targets," he said, adding that the suspects used social networking sites to lure potential victims. "They would put the kids in a dependent situation. If they wanted to leave, they'd have to perform sexual favors."
Deputies have identified victims in Georgia, Alabama and South Carolina. The trafficking scheme allegedly dates back two to three years, Copeland said.
Several other people lived at the suspects' home off Chapel Hill Road in Douglasville, including three minor children, but they apparently were not abused by either Lemery or Lynch, Copeland said.
Lynch told the Associated Press earlier this month that he helped investigators build their case before appearing on WAGA-TV, where he was spotted by one of his victims, Copeland said. Another minor victim has since come forward, he said.
Lynch and Lemeryare being held without bond in the Douglas County Jail.
