Woman Admits To Sex Trafficking A Minor In South Jersey: U.S. Attorney

A woman who was charged along with a Collingswood man in a sex trafficking operation has pleaded guilty to an information charging her with one count of sex trafficking of a minor, U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman said on Wednesday.

Aja M. Easley, 22, of Camden, Aaron J. Gray, 29, of Camden, and Kenneth A. Mertz, 35, of Collingswood, were previously charged in a criminal complaint with sex trafficking of a minor and conspiracy to engage in sex trafficking of a minor. Gray was also charged in the complaint with being a felon in possession of a firearm.

Easley admitted that on March 2, 2015, she communicated with a minor using a social media website, according to documents filed in the case and statements made in court.

She told the victim she was “worried about” her because of a previous assault by the victim’s boyfriend.
She offered the victim money, clothes and shelter, and met with her at the Camden Transportation Center.

Easley told the victim about a dating website, and said the victim could make money through the website by going on “dates.” Easley and the victim later met Gray and Mertz at a home in Camden.

Mertz is then accused of driving everyone to a motel in Cherry Hill, where Gray and Easley attempted to convince the victim to engage in commercial sex acts and took suggestive photos of the victim. Those photos were then used as part of an advertisement on the website.

Easley then used her cell phone to communicate with multiple people who responded to the ad, and Gray gave the victim instructions on what to do when the respondents arrived.

Gray is accused of possession of a firearm and a collapsible nightstick, which police believe belonged to Mertz.

On March 3, 2015, at a motel in Mount Laurel, New Jersey, police say the victim engaged in sex acts with multiple people, who responded to the ad and paid money to the defendants.

The defendants later told the victim they were taking the victim to Atlantic City to meet another person who had responded to the ad, police said.

On the way to Atlantic City, police allege the defendants agreed to let the victim stop at a house in Gloucester City, at which point the victim contacted police. This ultimately led to Gray’s and Easley’s arrests.

Easley faces a statutory mandatory minimum of 10 years in prison, a statutory maximum of life in prison, and a maximum fine of $250,000.

Sentencing is scheduled for Nov. 22.

The pending charges and allegations against Gray and Mertz are merely accusations, and the defendants are considered innocent unless and until proven guilty.