THIS IS NO HIGH SCHOOL
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Under-age runaways are pure gold to Dog Pound Gangsters. That’s why “JV-1” plays such key role in the federal complaint.
JV-1 is how Smith in his affidavit identifies a habitual runaway female juvenile. The anonymity is to protect a minor.
Dog Pound Gangster Aquilla Bailey allegedly was pimping JV-1 in Fresno and other cities throughout California.
Smith wrote that runaway juveniles are “lured into the seedy world of prostitution with promises of freedom and making money. They are often taken far away from their home in order to create the feeling of isolation and hopelessness, and ensure their dependency on their pimp/trafficker. Juveniles are often forced to perform ‘survival sex’ which is prostitution acts conducted in order to obtain the necessities of life….”
JV-1 came to the notice of investigators in early 2016, Smith wrote. They found photos of her on various Internet sites. She was barely clothed.
The sites are used by pimps to advertise their prostitutes. The sex ads said JV-1 would go to Fresno, Anaheim, Bakersfield, Camarillo, Los Angeles, Monterey, San Francisco, San Jose, San Diego, Las Vegas or Phoenix.
Smith wrote that, by means of a search warrant, agents learned that the Internet advertising account “which posted sex ads for JV-1 was established by a person using an email and user name of ‘aquillabailey@yahoo.com’….”
Smith wrote that he believes this ties Bailey to JV-1 and the interstate sex trafficking trade.
JV-1’s alleged life under Bailey’s thumb was precarious. On March 23, 2016, for example, JV-1 was working out of a motel in Bakersfield. She called Bailey because she had looked out her window and saw police busting a prostitute at a motel across the street.
According to Smith’s affidavit, Bailey said to JV-1 in a phone call, “How much money you have?” JV-1: “I have 80, but I’m fittin to leave Bakersfield, this shit is irritating Aquilla.”
Bailey said she could leave her room to go to a nearby store, but had to “come right back.” Smith wrote that Bailey would know if JV-1 followed his orders – he was in another room in the same motel.
All this happened between 3 and 4 in the afternoon. At 4:02 p.m., JV-1 told Bailey by phone that she was going back to work.
“I’m finna to go on this date real quick I’ll be back in 30 minutes,” JV-1 said, according to Smith’s affidavit.
Bailey: “Now you’re just cool, look at you girl.”
JV-1: Ain’t nobody cool, you got me f—ed up.”
Bailey: “What you trippin about?”
JV-1 said she was in a “f—ed up situation” because she wanted to leave Bakersfield but Bailey kept insisting that she stay. She said the cops were after her.
Bailey: “They don’t know where you are at.”
JV-1: “No, they don’t but I have undercover following me. I don’t have time for that shit.”
Bailey: “We’re not gonna leave, we can’t leave so stop being a weirdo and shit.”
JV-1 said she wouldn’t get into a car with Bailey and his associates: “I don’t know what you got going on.”
Bailey: “B*tch! Shut up! The f— (N-word).”
Smith wrote that law agents headed to JV-1’s motel to rescue her, but she somehow slipped past them.
Five days later, on March 28, agents learned that JV-1 was in Fresno. According to Smith’s affidavit, JV-1 was staying in Room 115 at the Ashlan Inn, in the 4200 block of East Ashlan Avenue. Agents saw her walk from a grocery store into the room. They saw Bailey walk in and out of the room several times.
A successful sting operation enabled agents to take JV-1 into protective custody. She admitted to having worked as a prostitute since the age of 16. She described the horrors of such a life.
“JV-1 said she was in Bakersfield when a John forced her into the trunk of his car and drove her back to her hotel,” Smith wrote. “This story is significant because it shows that Bailey is not only trafficking JV-1 for the purpose of sex acts, but he places her in extremely dangerous situations in which no child should be subjected. Furthermore, this shows the distorted mental state of JV-1, in that she believes being forced and locked into a vehicle’s trunk to be routine and acceptable just because she is a prostitute.”
JV-1 denied working for a pimp. Smith wrote that it’s rare for a juvenile prostitute to work as a “renegade” (solo) rather than for a pimp due to the dangers of the streets.
JV-1 was turned over to Fresno County Child Protective Services that night. At about 2:30 a.m. on March 29, Smith wrote, “JV-1 ran away from the CPS facility.”
Fresno police officers later that morning went looking for JV-1. First on their list of places to check – Room 115 at the Ashlan Inn.
An officer “located JV-1 in room #115 as well as Bailey,” Smith wrote. The officer “noted that JV-1 was wearing the same clothing as the previous day.” The officer “observed numerous unopened condoms and empty wrappers strewn about the room.”
Bailey told the officer that he knew JV-1 was a juvenile but didn’t know she was a runaway.
Bailey told the officer that “he was just friends with JV-1 and had come over that morning to hang out with her,” Smith wrote.
That’s highly unlikely, Smith added.
Officers took JV-1 to Juvenile Hall to keep her from running away again. As the officer was escorting JV-1 out of Room 115, Bailey asked JV-1 if she wanted her cell phone.
“JV-1 told Bailey to keep the telephone because he would need it more than she would,” Smith wrote.
Bailey put the phone in a pants pocket. He left the room.
