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Thunderstorms, some with heavy rain this evening followed by occasional showers overnight. Gusty winds and small hail are possible. Low 58F. Winds NNE at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 90%..
Tonight
Thunderstorms, some with heavy rain this evening followed by occasional showers overnight. Gusty winds and small hail are possible. Low 58F. Winds NNE at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 90%.
GRAHAM — The Alamance County Sheriff’s Office and District Attorney’s Office changed their approaches to prostitution in the past couple of years, treating prostitutes as victims and pimps as human traffickers.
William Lee Reynolds, 40, of Graham pleaded guilty Tuesday, Jan. 14, to 13 counts of human trafficking, according to a DA’s Office news release, multiple counts of sexual servitude, and one count of promoting prostitution, and was sentenced to 10 to 17 years in prison. He also will register as a sex offender for 30 years.
In May 2017 the victim’s mother reported to the Sheriff’s Office that her daughter was the victim of human trafficking, according to the release. When investigators interviewed the victim, she said Reynolds forced her into prostitution, gave her cocaine, bought her clothes, took photos of her, and advertised.
Reynolds took the money the victim made, and told her she would have to keep prostituting herself for food, drugs, shelter and anything else she wanted, according to the release. He is only the second person to be convicted of human trafficking in Alamance County.
After Reynolds was first arrested July 6, 2017, at the Econo Lodge on Hanford Road, Sheriff Terry Johnson said there were multiple victims and at least one co-defendant — a woman who appeared to be intellectually disabled and pregnant.
Reporter Isaac Groves can be reached at igroves@thetimesnews.com or 336-506-3045. Follow him on Twitter at @tnigroves.
