A Baldwin County man has been sentenced to over two decades in prison for attempting to engage in sex trafficking involving a minor. U.S. Attorney Prim F. Escalona and ICE Atlanta Special Agent in Charge Steven N. Schrank announced the sentencing.
William Guy Long, 27, from Bay Minette, Alabama, received a sentence of 276 months imprisonment followed by a lifetime of supervised release as determined by U.S. District Court Judge Anna Manasco. Additionally, Long is required to pay $5,000 under the Justice for Victims of Trafficking Act of 2015 after pleading guilty to the charge last October.
The plea agreement revealed that Long arranged a meeting with an escort and offered her $500 if she would bring an underage girl for sexual purposes. Long expressed interest in someone "10-years-old or younger" and agreed to pay $800 if the escort brought her nine-year-old daughter to him after school. The escort reported this request to law enforcement instead of complying.
Authorities corroborated Long's intentions through text messages and conducted surveillance at a hotel where he expected to meet the child. Upon opening his hotel room door, Long was apprehended by law enforcement officers instead of meeting the child he anticipated. He admitted communicating with an escort intending to solicit a minor for illegal sexual activity. With his consent, agents searched his cell phone and discovered additional messages requesting another individual find him "a young one."
The investigation was carried out by ICE alongside the Pelham Police Department and Hoover Police Department, with Assistant U.S. Attorney R. Leann White prosecuting the case.
Child sex trafficking remains a critical issue as highlighted by more than 27,800 reports received by the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) in 2024—a rise exceeding 30% from 2023 figures.
The Justice for Victims of Trafficking Act of 2015 equips the Department of Justice with tools like a mandatory $5,000 special assessment on non-indigent defendants convicted on certain charges. This funding supports services provided to victims of human trafficking among other offenses.
