Oklahoma City Man Sentenced to Serve More Than Twenty-Four Years in Federal Prison for Child Sex Trafficking

On November 20, 2019, Cifuentes-Lopez was stopped by the Oklahoma City Police Department and arrested by Homeland Security Investigations when it was determined he was undocumented and lacked legal status in the United States.  On December 4, 2019, a federal grand jury returned a two-count Indictment against Cifuentes-Lopez, charging him with child sex trafficking of two children, aged 14 and 15.  According to court documents, Cifuentes-Lopez recruited, obtained, harbored, and patronized the child victims, knowing they would be caused to engage in commercial sex acts.  Cifuentes-Lopez owned the trailer where the two child victims lived and threatened to evict their family if he and other men were not provided with sex.  He engaged in this conduct with one child between November 2016 and January 18, 2019, and with the second child between March 2018 and January 18, 2019.

On March 9, 2020, Cifuentes-Lopez pleaded guilty to both counts of child sex trafficking. 

On April 16, 2021, U.S. District Judge Charles B. Goodwin sentenced Cifuentes-Lopez to serve 292 months in federal prison, followed by five years of supervised release.  In addition, Judge Goodwin ordered Cifuentes-Lopez to pay $10,200 in special assessments and stated that restitution for the victims will be determined at a subsequent hearing.  In imposing the sentence, Judge Goodwin noted that Cifuentes-Lopez had exerted undue influence over the children and had engaged in a pattern of prohibited sexual conduct.

Two other defendants in this investigation have already been sentenced, both for sex trafficking of the same children.  On October 21, 2020, ERI LEONARDO CIFUENTES-LOPEZ, 42, of Oklahoma City, was sentenced to more than 24 years in prison, followed by five years of supervised release.  On February 11, 2021, WILSON GRAMAJO-MALDONADO, 30, of Oklahoma City, was sentenced to 27 years in prison, followed by five year of supervised release.  In addition to those terms of incarceration, Judge Goodwin ordered both Eri Cifuentes-Lopez and Gramajo-Maldonado to pay $5,100 in special assessments.

Upon their release from prison, all three men will be required to register as sex offenders.

“Sex trafficking of children is a horrendous crime that preys upon the most vulnerable in our society and steals their innocence,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Troester.  “Prosecuting those who exploit child victims rescues child victims from the abusive life of sex trafficking and helps them reclaim their lives.  I commend the incredible work by the prosecutors, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Homeland Security Investigations, and Oklahoma City Police Department in holding accountable those who sell children for sex.”

This case is the result of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Oklahoma City Field Division, U.S. Homeland Security Investigations, and the Oklahoma City Police Department.  Assistant U.S. Attorneys K. McKenzie Anderson and Mary E. Walters prosecuted the case.

This case is part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched by the Department of Justice to combat child sexual exploitation and abuse.  Led by U.S. Attorney’s Offices and the Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section of the Department of Justice, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to better locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims.  For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.

Reference is made to public filings for more information.