THREE CALIFORNIANS CHARGED WITH CHILD SEX
TRAFFICKING

PHOENIX – A 30-year old California man arrested late last week is charged along with two others with recruiting and transporting two minor girls from Phoenix to San Diego to engage in prostitution. Uawndre Fields, 30, of Paradise, Calif., was arrested by FBI agents on May 16 in San Diego. Julia Fonteneaux, 22, of San Diego, Calif., was arrested by FBI in Los Angeles on April 12, and DePaul Brooks, 25, of National City, Calif., was arrested in Phoenix after a routine traffic stop on May 10. The three are charged in a four count indictment returned by a federal grand jury in April with violations of Child Sex Trafficking and Interstate Transportation of a Minor for Prostitution.

Fonteneaux and Fields remain in custody in California pending their transfer to Phoenix to face charges. Brooks was released after a detention hearing last week and remains under electronic monitoring.

The indictment alleges that in April 2006, the defendants transported two minor victims between Phoenix, Arizona and San Diego, California for the purposes of engaging in prostitution. For offenses occurring in 2006, a conviction for Child Sex Trafficking carries a maximum penalty of 40 years, a $ 250,000 fine, or both.

For offenses occurring in 2006, a conviction for Interstate Transportation of a Minor for Prostitution carries a maximum penalty of 30 years with a minimum of 5 years, a $ 250,000 fine, or both. In determining an actual sentence, Judge Campbell will consult the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines, which provide appropriate sentencing ranges. The judge, however, is not bound by those guidelines in determining a sentence.

An indictment is simply the method by which a person is charged with criminal activity and raises no inference of guilt. An individual is presumed innocent until competent evidence is presented to a jury that establishes guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.

The investigation preceding the indictment was conducted by the Phoenix Police Department and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The prosecution is being handled by Tracey A. Bardorf, Assistant U.S. Attorney, District of Arizona, Phoenix.

CASE NUMBER: CR07-00411-PHX-DGC
RELEASE NUMBER: 2007-135(Fields)