A California man has been sentenced to nine years in prison for coercing two women to travel across state lines for prostitution. Demarco Raushi Coney-Jones II, 31, from Merced, was found guilty of encouraging one victim to travel from Las Vegas, Nevada, to Alexandria, Virginia, in August 2023. In a separate incident between October 2 and October 8, 2023, he coerced another woman to travel from California to Alexandria for the same purpose.
Part of these offenses occurred while Coney-Jones was detained on charges related to the theft of jewelry worth over $3 million from a sex buyer associated with one of his trafficking victims. At the time of his arrest, authorities discovered that despite a previous conviction for possessing an unregistered firearm, Coney-Jones had a stolen handgun and an AK-47 assault rifle with its serial number removed.
The FBI Washington Field Office led the investigation into this case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Alessandra Serano and former Assistant U.S. Attorney Meredith J. Edwards prosecuted the case.
“A copy of this press release is located on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia. Related court documents and information are located on the website of the District Court or on PACER by searching for Case No. 1:24-cr-176.”
