Couple Who Forced Teen Into Prostitution In Lawrence Indicted

A Trenton couple that was arrested in January after their alleged 17-year-old human trafficking victim was found walking along I-295 in Lawrence Township has been indicted, authorities announced on Wednesday.

• First-degree conspiracy;
• First-degree human trafficking;
• Second-degree facilitating human trafficking;
• First-degree promoting the prostitution of a minor;
• First-degree promoting organized street crime;
• First-degree advertising commercial sexual abuse of a minor; and
• Second-degree endangering the welfare of a child.

The alleged victim was found walking down I-295 on Jan. 11 by New Jersey State Police. When she told them she had been forced into prostitution, being taken from hotel to hotel against her will and forced to engage in sexual acts with multiple men, police tracked down and arrested Gardener and Mickens soon after.

The girl was forced to engage in sex acts with up to 15 men at a time, Attorney General Gurbir S. Grewal said on Wednesday.

“Human traffickers prey on the vulnerable, depriving victims of their freedom, isolating them from any benevolent support network, and forcing them into a miserable life of slavery – in this case, sexual slavery,” Grewal said. “We will continue to work tirelessly with our law enforcement partners at all levels, as well as victim advocates, to raise awareness about human trafficking, rescue victims, and bring those responsible for these terrible crimes to justice.”

Gardener is accused of placing sexually suggestive ads online that featured photos of herself and the victim. The ads offered adult entertainment and listed Gardener's phone number for clients to call, police said.

When a client arrived, Gardener would collect cash from the man and tell the 17-year-old victim what sex acts she had to perform, authorities said. It is alleged that Gardener sometimes would stay in the room, but other times she would leave.

Mickens acted as the “muscle” for the operation and would be inside the hotel room when clients arrived, according to authorities. He would leave after the clients paid. The victim never received any of the money from the clients. This went on for three days before the victim was finally able to escape.

Gardener was arrested at a hotel in Lawrence Township shortly after police first spoke with the victim. On Sunday, January 14, the New Jersey State Police Trafficking Central Unit, Fugitive Unit, Electronic Surveillance Unit, and the United States Marshal's Service New Jersey/New York Regional Fugitive Task Force-Trenton Division, located and arrested Mickens in Trenton.

“Through our Human Trafficking Unit, we’re focusing resources on aggressively prosecuting human traffickers and recovering their victims from the shadows where these crimes occur,” said Director Elie Honig of the Division of Criminal Justice.

“Trafficking anyone, man or woman, boy or girl, is a violation of basic human rights—it is appalling and indecent, and it will not be tolerated in New Jersey,” Colonel Patrick Callahan, Acting Superintendent of the New Jersey State Police, said. “I commend the State Police Trafficking Central Unit, Troop “C” CIO, Fugitive Unit, and our partners for swiftly locating and arresting those responsible, and also the person who called 9-1-1, because public assistance is an essential component of our mission.”

The first-degree human trafficking charge carries a sentence of 20 years without parole to life in state prison and a fine of up to $200,000. The charge of promoting organized street crime carries a sentence of 15 to 30 years in state prison, consecutive to the sentence for any underlying crime. The other first-degree charges carry a sentence of 10 to 20 years in state prison and a fine of up to $200,000. Second-degree charges carry a sentence of five to 10 years in state prison and a fine of up to $150,000.

The attached images of Ashley Gardener and Breon Mickens were previously provided by New Jersey State Police.