A 34-year-old man from Ferndale who trafficked and had sex with children in Metro Detroit motels while he was on bond from a federal drug case in North Dakota was sentenced to 15 years and eight months in federal prison.
Toriano Davis pled guilty to two counts of sex trafficking of a minor in February of 2023. The 34-year-old man was sentenced Tuesday (July 18).
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Officials say they first began investigating Davis while attempting to locate two girls who were minors that had run away from Lansing in late 20202.
A relative of one of the minors contacted law enforcement with information and expressed fears that minors were being trafficked in the Detroit area.
Police recovered the minors from a motel room in Southfield, Michigan, in December 2020.
After further investigation, Davis was located in a motel in Roseville, Michigan. Officials say they found a nude 15-year-old girl in the room.
An additional investigation uncovered Davis had trafficked at least two minors and had rented motel rooms for them to engage in commercial sex, and assisted them with advertising online for commercial sex dates.
The 34-year-old took the proceeds from the minors’ commercial sex dates own use, including purchasing drugs and renting expensive cars.
Davis had sex with the minors and had recorded himself having sex with one of the minors on a cell phone.
“The sexual abuse and trafficking of children is a scourge on our community that leaves an indelible mark on victims,” said U.S. Attorney Dawn Ison. “The video recording of that abuse only perpetuates the abuse. This defendant committed these heinous acts while on bond in a federal drug case. The lengthy sentence imposed today will protect the public from this defendant and help keep our community safe for children.”
“This defendant callously sold minors to other men for his own financial benefit,” said Devin J. Kowalski, Acting Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Detroit Field Office. “Combating sex trafficking and violence in our communities is of the highest priority for the FBI and our law enforcement partners across Southeast Michigan.”