Teen Killed in Garage Was Sex Trafficking Victim, Family Says

MARKHAM, IL - A 16-year-old girl who was found in a pool of blood in a Markham garage on Christmas Eve was the victim of sex trafficking through the infamous website Backpage.com, her family said while indicating plans to possibly sue the website known for enabling the spread of prostitution and sex trafficking.

Related: Teen Assaulted, Then Killed in Markham Garage on Christmas Eve

Gina Arquilla DeBoni, an attorney for the family of murder victim Desiree Robinson, said in court this week that her firm will investigate the role Backpage.com played in the death and potentially file a civil suit, according to a report from the Daily Southtown. DeBoni said Robinson was advertised as a paid escort on the site before she was killed by 32-year-old Antonio Rosales of Chicago in a garage in the 16200 block of South Hamlin Avenue on Dec. 24.

Rosales faces three counts of murder and two counts of aggravated criminal sexual abuse and is being held without bond on the charges. He’ll appear in court again on March 13.

"We're appalled that Backpage.com continues to create an environment that puts young women and children at risk — outright allowing obvious posts designed to solicit sex, in this case, with a minor," DeBoni said,

Previous reports indicate Rosales was accused of calling Robinson through the Backpage.com service late on the night of Dec. 23 and invited her to a party on the same block in which she was later found dead. He allegedly told police he punched Robinson and slit her throat inside the garage when he was unable to pay for the sexual encounter. He denied the pair had sex.

Just days after the murder, Robinson's mother Yvonne Robinson referred to her daughter as a “beautiful, kind-hearted” and free-spirited girl. One who did not deserve her eventual fate.

"She didn't deserve this,” she said. “And there are a lot of babies out here that don't deserve it."

More via the Daily Southtown