CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. — A total of 12 people are behind bars after a two-day operation to curb human trafficking in Chattanooga.
The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation said special agents linked up with the Chattanooga Police Department, Homeland Security Investigations and the Tennessee Human Trafficking Task Force to arrest 11 men they said were looking to solicit and have sex with children, and one woman they said was promoting prostitution.
The TBI said the two-day undercover operation began November 10 as part of a larger investigation aimed at cracking down on human trafficking in East Tennessee.
Undercover officers placed decay ads on websites known to be linked to prostitution and commercial sex, with a focus of finding criminals trying to engage in commercial sex acts with minors.
The TBI said one adult victim identified in the trafficking operation accepted help from Willowbend Farms, a non-profit that helps survivors of human trafficking, as well as the Community Coalition Against Human Trafficking.
The TBI identified the 12 suspects and booked them into the Hamilton County Jail on the following charges:
- Timothy E. Berger (DOB 08/04/1980), Ooltewah: One count Solicitation of a Minor, one count Trafficking for a Commercial Sex Act.
- Mike Yang Chen (DOB 05/10/1969), Rossville, GA: One count Solicitation of a Minor, one count Trafficking for a Commercial Sex Act.
- George Michael McCaw (DOB 11/25/1967), Clarksville, GA: One count Solicitation of a Minor, one count Trafficking for a Commercial Sex Act.
- John Dilorenzo (DOB 10/16/1987), Soddy-Daisy: One count Solicitation of a Minor, one count Trafficking for a Commercial Sex Act, one count Simple Possession of Schedule VI.
- Johnathan Brent Grizzard (DOB 12/10/1981), Harrison: One count Solicitation of a Minor, one count Trafficking for a Commercial Sex Act.
- Tomas Juarez Eulalio Gumercindo (DOB 04/17/1990), Chicago, IL: One count Solicitation of a Minor, one count Trafficking for a Commercial Sex Act, one count Resisting Stop, Arrest.
- Vy T. Ton (DOB 10/10/1987), Hixson: One count Solicitation of a Minor, one count Trafficking for a Commercial Sex Act.
- Carey Lamar Williams (DOB 03/07/1990), Hixson: One count Solicitation of a Minor, one count Trafficking for a Commercial Sex Act, one count Possession Schedule VI for Resale, one count Driving on Suspended DL.
- Contreras Gaspar Ramirez (DOB 03/03/1973), Cartersville, GA: One count Solicitation of a Minor, one count Trafficking for a Commercial Sex Act.
- James M. Walters (DOB 04/14/1956), Hixson: One count Solicitation of a Minor, one count Trafficking for a Commercial Sex Act.
- Jason A. Pastor (DOB 01/25/1996), Cookeville: One count Solicitation of a Minor, one count Trafficking for a Commercial Sex Act.
- Shemetra Keyanta McKinney (DOB 12/04/1996), Chattanooga: One count Promotion of Prostitution, one count Simple Possession of Schedule VI.