A Tennessee man was sentenced to 30 years in federal prison Friday after his conviction for sex trafficking crimes.
According to a release from the U.S. Department of Justice, Anthony Hawkins, 41, of Memphis, was convicted of five counts related to sex trafficking, including sex trafficking of a minor victim and sex trafficking by force, fraud and coercion.
According to a release from the Department of Justice, Hawkins took three women from New Orleans to Houston to put them on the "prostitution track" in 2016. While in Houston, officials said Hawkins picked up a 15-year-old runaway and also put her "on the track."
Investigators said Hawkins brought the women and the teen to Memphis to work. All of the women, including the minor, testified that Hawkins threatened to – and did – use violence to keep them from leaving him.
Hawkins struck them, pointed a gun at them and fired warning shots, and once even “used a hot hair iron” to intimidate the women into doing as he instructed, according to the release.
Hawkins’ trial lasted three days in federal court in July 2018.
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