Two men from Atlantic County were charged Thursday with the serious crime of prostituting three children under the age of 18 and other related charges.
Saleem Reynolds (26) of Atlantic City and Mikal Mitchell (30) from Somers Point were first charged in December 2015 with the offenses following an intensive four-month investigation by the FBI's Child Exploitation Task Force (CETF).
The focus of the investigation was to dig into the exploitation of children under the age of 18 and adult primarily for the purposes of prostitution. Detective Greg Engstler, from the Atlantic County Sheriff's Office, and Detective Paul Vanaman, from the Department of Human Services Police, both members of the FBI's CETF were leading investigations for four months and were assisted by Atlantic County Prosecutor's Office Sergeant Bill Adamson and Detective Jennifer Cugini.
During the investigations, three children were located and recovered. They were kept under the protection of authorities.
CETF consists of members of federal, state, county and local law enforcement agencies that aim to Identify and prosecute those involved in the sex trafficking of minors and, recover the victims to ensure their safety and provide them access to the services they need.
Reynolds and Mitchell were charged with conspiracy of promoting the prostitution of a child under 18, promoting the prostitution of a minor, and endangering the social welfare of a child.
Acting Atlantic County Prosecutor Diane Ruberton mentioned that in addition to that, both of them are each charged with several counts of offenses. While Reynolds was indicted of facilitating adults prostitution, Mitchell was charged with additional counts of endangering the welfare of a child and promoting the prostitution of a child under 18 as well as terroristic acts.
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