| For Immediate Release Case # 13NF1430 October 3, 2013 |
Susan Kang Schroeder Chief of Staff Office: 714-347-8408 Cell: 714-292-2718 Farrah Emami
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WOMAN SENTENCED TO SIX YEARS IN STATE PRISON FOR ATTEMPTING TO RECRUIT UNDERCOVER OFFICER POSING AS 17-YEAR-OLD GIRL ON FACEBOOK TO ENGAGE IN COMMERCIAL SEX
FULLERTON – A woman identified in an undercover Facebook operation was sentenced yesterday to six years in state prison for attempting to recruit an undercover officer posing as a 17-year-old girl on Facebook to engage in commercial sex. Dominica Darlene Wallace, 25, Vallejo, pleaded guilty yesterday, Oct. 2, 2013, to one felony count of pandering by procuring for the purpose of prostitution.
Circumstances of the Case
Wallace is a pimp who sexually exploits women and/or children for financial gain.
Prior to April 30, 2013, Wallace befriended and engaged in conversation, via Facebook and texts, with an Anaheim Police Department (APD) undercover officer (Officer) posing as a 17-year-old girl. Wallace believed Officer was a 17-year-old minor, instructed her on the proper methods of prostitution, and expressed a desire to take her to Las Vegas in order to have her engage in commercial sex. After the online conversations, Wallace downloaded a fake picture from Officer’s Facebook page, believing that it was a photo of the girl with whom she had been speaking. She posted it as an ad on a website known for the solicitation of prostitutes. It is the policy of the Orange County District Attorney’s Office not to divulge the name of such websites.
On or about April 30, 2013, Wallace personally answered two separate calls, made by two APD undercover officers, who responded to the ad that Wallace had set up. Wallace set up sexual encounters for the underage girl and directed the two APD undercover officers to an Anaheim motel where she believed her newly recruited, 17-year-old prostitute was staying.
Later that day, Wallace was contacted by APD and subsequently arrested.
This case was investigated by APD and Deputy District Attorney Brad Schoenleben of the HEAT Unit prosecuted this case.
Proposition 35 and HEAT
In November 2012, California’s anti-human trafficking Proposition 35 (Prop 35) was enacted in California with 81 percent of the vote, and over 82 percent of the vote in Orange County, to increase the penalty for human trafficking, particularly in cases involving the trafficking of a minor by force.
The Orange County District Attorney’s Human Exploitation And Trafficking (HEAT) Unit targets perpetrators who sexually exploit and traffic women and underage girls for financial gain, including pimps, panderers, and human traffickers. The HEAT Unit uses a tactical plan called PERP: Prosecution, to bring justice for victims of human trafficking and hold perpetrators responsible using Prop 35; Education, to provide law enforcement training to properly handle human trafficking and pandering cases; Resources from public-private partnerships to raise public awareness about human trafficking and provide assistance to the victims; and Publicity, to inform the public and send a message to human traffickers that this crime cannot be perpetrated without suffering severe consequences.