Knoxville Resident Sentenced for Interstate Sex Trafficking

U.S. Attorney’s Office, Eastern District of Tennessee — September 23, 2011

On September 23, 2011, U.S. District Judge Thomas W. Phillips sentenced Selvin Salvador Perdomo, 37, of Knoxville, Tennessee, to 24 months in federal prison after Perdomo pleaded guilty to transporting an individual across state lines for prostitution.

Perdomo, a Honduran national legally present in the United States on a visa, agreed to cooperate with removal proceedings following completion of his sentence.

During 2010, FBI surveillance documented Perdomo routinely transporting women from the greater Atlanta area to Knoxville for commercial sex work. He typically charged clients $30 for 15 minutes and retained half the proceeds. The women worked seven nights per week before being returned to Georgia and replaced.

U.S. Attorney Bill Killian emphasized the collaborative effort by federal, state, and local agencies, stating that such offenders “took advantage of these women, due to their immigration status” and would be vigorously prosecuted.

The investigation involved the FBI, Knoxville Police Department, Knox County Sheriff’s Office, Safe Streets Task Force, Loudon County Sheriff’s Office, Maryville Police Department, Blount County Sheriff’s Office, Fifth Judicial Drug Task Force, and the Appalachia HIDTA program. Assistant U.S. Attorney Melissa M. Kirby represented the United States.

Source: U.S. Attorney’s Office press releases, July 14, 2010 and September 23, 2011