SAN ANTONIO, TX — On Tuesday, September 16, a Venezuelan national was sentenced in federal court to 10 years in prison for two human trafficking charges and being an alien in possession of a firearm, according to a press release from the Department of Justice (DOJ).
The suspect, 34-year-old Edson Jose Contreras-Torrealba, was sentenced by a federal judge to serve 120 months in federal prison, following an investigation conducted by ICE Homeland Security Investigations with assistance from the San Antonio Police Department, according to a press release from ICE.
Court documents state that Contreras-Torrealba and another co-defendant both conspired from February 2024 to August 19, 2024, to recruit, entice, harbor, and transport multiple adult women to provide sexual services for a fee in San Antonio.
The victims were not free to leave Contreras-Torrealba's apartment or the designated hotel rooms without permission from the co-conspirators, and they were required to work every day at all times of the day and night, according to prosecutors.
Additionally, Contreras-Torrealba always carried a 9mm pistol and had the handgun when he was arrested at a hotel in San Antonio on August 19, 2024. One of the victims, an undocumented Venezuelan, was reportedly recruited over Facebook when she was living in Colombia.
He provided money for the woman to travel from Colombia across the U.S.-Mexico border, and once she was out of ICE detention in April 2024, Contreras-Torrealba harbored her in an apartment and told her she owed him $30,000 for her travel debt. Prosecutors said he instructed her to pay off that debt with proceeds from commercial sex.
The victim facilitated up to 20 appointments per day for sexual intercourse for a fee, none of which went to the victim herself. Contreras-Torrealba charged the victim $50 per day to reside in the apartment, as well as $50 for every prostitution appointment that required transportation.
The victim was arrested twice in 2024, and Contreras-Torrealba added the cost of her bond to the debt she owed him. "We cannot be a society that tolerates the commoditization of humans for the purposes of sex," said Justin R. Simmons, U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Texas.
"If you intend to profit off of the sexual commoditization of humans, do not come to San Antonio, or anywhere else in the Western District of Texas, because our law enforcement partners at the local, state, and federal levels are dedicated to ending the proliferation of human trafficking in San Antonio and throughout the District."
"The sentencing of this international predator underscores our unwavering commitment to protecting those most vulnerable and combating transnational criminal organizations," said HSI San Antonio Special Agent in Charge Craig Larrabee. "This case highlights the critical importance of collaboration between our local partners to dismantle criminal networks that affect San Antonio and beyond."
"HSI will continue to prioritize the fight against human trafficking and gangs to ensure justice is served," he added. "We thank our law enforcement partners and prosecutors for their dedication to this case."
"This sentencing sends a clear message that human trafficking and organized criminal activity have no place in San Antonio," said San Antonio Police Chief William McManus. "We will pursue justice relentlessly and continue our commitment to safeguarding victims, alongside our federal partners."
Contreras-Torrealba's co-conspirator, Eyleen Aular-Marin, was sentenced on September 3 to 70 months in federal prison. Another co-defendant, Ronayde Salazar-Garcia, who, for two weeks, served as a driver for the victims in the human trafficking scheme and helped ensure the victims did not leave their confined locations, is scheduled to be sentenced on October 21.
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