Leah B. Foley United States Attorney for the District of Massachusetts | Department of Justice
A Lynn man, Anthony Coleman, was sentenced on Mar. 18 in federal court in Boston to 12 years in prison for financially benefiting from trafficking two women for sex and persuading them to travel across state lines for prostitution.
The case highlights the ongoing issue of human trafficking and the targeting of vulnerable individuals during times of crisis. According to court documents, Coleman exploited victims who had lost their jobs or homes during the COVID-19 pandemic shutdowns between March and August of 2020.
U.S. District Court Judge Richard G. Stearns ordered that Coleman, age 36, serve three years of supervised release following his prison term and pay $77,000 in restitution. In December 2025, Coleman pleaded guilty to two counts each of benefitting financially from trafficking and knowingly persuading and coercing a person to travel for prostitution. He was indicted by a federal grand jury in March 2024 and arrested the following month; he has remained in custody since then.
Court records show that Coleman had his victims move into his residence, controlled online commercial sex advertisements for them, provided scripts for negotiating with buyers, transported them to hotels or other locations for commercial sex acts, and required them to give him all proceeds earned. He also coerced his victims into having sex with him regularly.
One victim was recruited after losing her job due to the pandemic; she was sometimes forced into sexual acts with up to sixteen clients per day while Coleman kept all profits. He also took her on multiple trips to Florida for commercial sex work and physically abused her—including an incident where he held her underwater while threatening her life. Another victim was recruited after being kicked out of her home; unable to find employment due to business closures from COVID-19 restrictions, she engaged in commercial sex at Coleman's direction before being persuaded by him in May 2020 to travel with him to California. After leaving Coleman’s control, she received threats against herself and family members.
United States Attorney Leah B. Foley said assistance came from Homeland Security Investigations as well as Massachusetts State Police and local police departments from Revere and Cambridge.
