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Bondsman arrested for attacking women in prison for human trafficking: AG Moody

Bondsman arrested for attacking women in prison for human trafficking: AG Moody

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (WFLA) – A bail bondsman has been charged with alleged human trafficking and racketeering, Attorney General Ashley Moody’s Office announced Tuesday.

The attorney general’s office said an investigation by the Metropolitan Bureau of Investigations found that Russell Bruce Moncrief — who worked as a serf in Central Florida — targeted female inmates at the Orange County Jail on charges of prostitution and /or drugs, by offering them a deposit in exchange for sex. .

Moncrief owns Moncrief Bail Bonds, which operates in multiple Florida counties. He allegedly tied up female prisoners in exchange for sex with himself or someone else. Moncrief also allegedly sold women he had bound to other people for financial gain, threatening to revoke the victim’s bond if they did not cooperate.

“The defendant used his position as a bail bondsman to rob women in the criminal justice system,” said Attorney General Ashley Moody. “After freeing his victims from prison, he continued to use his power over them to sell the women for sex to others for his own financial gain. Working with MBI, we exposed this sickening scheme, and we will prosecute the defendant on charges of human trafficking and racketeering.”

Moncrief was arrested and is being held without bond. He faces three counts of trafficking in persons for commercial sexual activity, one count of racketeering and one count of unlawful use of a two-way communication device to facilitate the commission of a crime.

If convicted, Moncrief faces up to 125 years in prison.

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