DETROIT – The leader of a large drug trafficking ring that operated out of a Detroit hotel was sentenced Wednesday, July 24.
Darrick Bell, 55, was convicted in June 2022 on three drug-related charges. He was acquitted on one count of sex trafficking and the jury was unable to reach a unanimous verdict on four other sex trafficking charges.
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According to authorities, Bell sold drugs to vulnerable women to control them and used them to keep customers coming to the now-demolished Victory Inn on Michigan Avenue, where he operated. Court documents claim he turned the hotel into a drug distribution business by taking control of the rooms and moving drug dealers who worked with him onto the premises.
Bell reported used drugs, manipulation and violence to control the Victory Inn, which often saw no vacancy because the rooms were filled with women and victims “living in unspeakable conditions as severe drug addicts.” He allegedly trapped women in a cycle of addiction for his own financial gain by supplying drugs to women who would engage in sex work and then use the money to buy and use more drugs.
He reportedly used violence and the threat of violence to make sure the women continually paid him money for drugs.
The Victory Inn was demolished in 2017, roughly a year after police raided the motel. Bell was not present during the raid and was arrested after three years on the run.
Bell was sentenced to 28 years in prison.