Southern California man arrested for alleged sex trafficking of 15-year-old girl
A Southern California man was arrested and charged with the alleged sex trafficking of a 15-year-old girl.
The suspect was identified as Placied Vercher, 37, of Long Beach, according to the Orange County District Attorney's Office.
On May 29, officers with the Orange County Human Trafficking Task Force received information about a 15-year-old girl who was being exploited for commercial sex in Los Angeles and Orange counties.
Within hours of receiving the tip, investigators located the girl in Anaheim. The suspect was located driving on the 91 Freeway, where officers pulled him over and took him into custody.
Details remain limited and authorities did not release information on how the victim met the suspect or how long the alleged sex trafficking had been occurring.
On June 2, prosecutors from the DA's Office charged Vercher with pimping for a prostitute under 16 years old, pandering with a minor under 16 years old, and human trafficking of a minor.
Vercher remains in custody and is being held on $200,000 bail.
Authorities ask anyone who may be a victim or is aware of a victim of human trafficking to call the National Human Trafficking Resource Center Hotline at 888-373-7888 or contact your local law enforcement agency.
Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
31 minutes ago
- Yahoo
California leaders condemn Ice raids in LA: ‘We will not stand for this'
The Department of Homeland Security conducted raids on multiple locations across Los Angeles on Friday, clashing with the crowds of people who gathered to protest and prompting widespread criticism from California leaders. Masked agents were recorded pulling several people out of two LA-area Home Depot stores and the clothing manufacturer Ambient Apparel's headquarters in LA's Fashion District. Immigration advocates said the raids also included four other locations, including a doughnut shop. There has not yet been confirmation of how many people were taken into custody during the coordinated sweeps. At an afternoon press conference, Angelica Salas, executive director for the Coalition of Humane Immigrant Rights, said at least 45 people were arrested without warrants. 'Our community is under attack and is being terrorized. These are workers, these are fathers, these are mothers, and this has to stop. Immigration enforcement that is terrorizing our families throughout this country and picking up our people that we love must stop now,' Salas told the crowd. The protest only grew as the afternoon wore on. By 6pm local time, hundreds of people assembled around the federal building in downtown Los Angeles, where those taken into custody during the raids are being held. Earlier in the day, armed agents clad in heavy protective and tactical gear, including some who wore gas masks, could be seen on video and through aerial footage pushing individuals and trying to corral large groups that congregated to challenge the raids. Smoke grenades were reportedly thrown near the crowds and pepper spray was used as the federal officers attempted to clear the area. As the demonstrations continued into the evening, videos showed officers firing less-lethal weapons toward protestors. Some people in the crowd attempted to block large armored trucks carrying FBI agents as they departed. One person reportedly threw eggs at the vehicles. The Los Angeles fire department was called to the scene to administer aid to protesters injured by agents and officers, which included the president of the California branch of the Service Employees International Union (SEIU), David Huerta. The organization said in statement he was detained and called for his immediate release. Huerta, who was injured and detained, released a statement to the Los Angeles Times from the hospital, saying: 'What happened to me is not about me. This is about something much bigger.' 'This is about how we as a community stand together and resist the injustice that's happening. Hard-working people, and members of our family and our community, are being treated like criminals. We all collectively have to object to this madness because this is not justice,' he added. 'We call for an end to the cruel, destructive, and indiscriminate Ice raids that are tearing apart our communities, disrupting our economy, and hurting all working people,' Tia Orr, executive director of SEIU California said. 'Immigrant workers are essential to our society: feeding our nation, caring for our elders, cleaning our workplaces, and building our homes.' The Los Angeles police department also assisted the federal officers in dispersing demonstrators, despite the department's insistence that it is not involved in 'civil immigration enforcement', and would only have a presence to ensure public safety. Advocates used megaphones from the streets outside where the raids were occurring to remind workers inside of their rights, the Los Angeles Times reported. Some called out individual names and demanded they be given access to lawyers. 'The community is here with you,' one person shouted. 'Your family is here with you.' Los Angeles leaders were quick to condemn the actions, which were part of a string of high-profile raids undertaken by Immigration and Customs Enforcement under orders from Donald Trump. In a statement on Friday, California governor Gavin Newsom said: 'Continued chaotic federal sweeps, across California, to meet an arbitrary arrest quota are as reckless as they are cruel. Donald Trump's chaos is eroding trust, tearing families apart, and undermining the workers and industries that power America's economy.' Newsom also condemned Huerta's arrest, saying: 'David Huerta is a respected leader, a patriot, and an advocate for working people. No one should ever be harmed for witnessing government action.' 'I am closely monitoring the Ice raids that are currently happening across Los Angeles, including at a Korean-American owned store in my district,' Congresswoman Sydney Kamlager-Dove said in a post on X, along with instructions on how affected constituents could reach her office for help. 'LA has long been a safe haven for immigrants,' she added. 'Trump claims he's targeting criminals, but he's really just tearing families apart and destabilizing entire communities.' Mayor Karen Bass said in a statement that she was 'deeply angered by what has taken place', and that her office was coordinating with immigrant rights community organizations. 'These tactics sow terror in our communities and disrupt basic principles of safety in our city,' she said. 'We will not stand for this.' In response, Trump's deputy chief of staff, Stephen Miller, who has functioned as one of the chief architects of the administration's draconian immigration crackdowns, wrote: 'You have no say in this at all. Federal law is supreme and federal law will be enforced.' Los Angeles councilmember Eunisses Hernandez said in a statement: 'These actions are escalating: agents arrive without warning and leave quickly, aware that our communities mobilize fast. I urge Angelenos to stay alert.' Meanwhile, the California senator Alex Padilla said: 'The Ice raids across Los Angeles today are a continuation of a disturbing pattern of extreme and cruel immigration enforcement operations across the country. These indiscriminate raids prove once again that the Trump administration cares about nothing but instilling harm and fear in our communities to drive immigrants into the shadows. It will not work.' He added: 'This fearmongering is not going to change the fact that immigrants are valued members of our communities who contribute to our society and economy, and my office will demand accountability for today's actions.' Similarly, the Los Angeles county supervisor Lindsey Horvath called the Ice raids 'acts of cruelty and bigotry, targeting our immigrant neighbors and tearing families apart'. Horvath added: 'These actions are designed to instill fear in communities of color – but we will not be intimidated, and we will not be silent. I'm in direct communication with county, state, & community leaders to ensure that all available protections from LA County are activated immediately. We must remain vigilant. We must protect one another. And above all, we will stand together.' Maya Yang contributed to this report


Fox News
33 minutes ago
- Fox News
Death row inmate killed in California prison as guards deploy blast grenades to control violent mob attack
California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR) officials are investigating after a death row inmate was killed at Kern Valley State Prison in Delano on Friday. Convicted murderer Mario Renteria, 36, allegedly started beating fellow inmate, Julian Mendez, 46, at about 10:30 a.m. Friday, prompting prison staff to respond. Officers ordered them to get down, but the men failed to comply, according to a CDCR news release obtained by Fox News Digital. Chemical agents initially stopped the attack, but more than 30 additional inmates rushed Renteria and began striking him. Orders to stop were ignored, and staff used multiple blast grenades to quell the violence, according to CDCR. Mendez suffered multiple wounds, and life-saving measures were immediately taken. He was taken to the prison's triage and treatment area, where a doctor pronounced him dead at 11:05 a.m. Officials said an improvised weapon was found at the scene, though the type of weapon was unclear. Renteria remains in restricted housing pending investigation, according to CDCR. Officials limited population movement to facilitate the investigation by the prison's Investigative Services Unit and the Kern County District Attorney's Office. The Office of the Inspector General was notified, and the Kern County Coroner will determine Mendez's official cause of death. Mendez was received from Riverside County on Dec. 2, 2004, according to CDCR. He received a condemned sentence in 2002 for the first-degree murder of two teenagers. CDCR said Renteria was received from Riverside County on April 27, 2022, and was sentenced to life with the possibility of parole for first-degree murder (a third-strike offense) and arson. Kern Valley State Prison opened in 2005 and houses over 3,100 minimum- and high-security-custody inmates.


Washington Post
35 minutes ago
- Washington Post
Immigration authorities extend activity in Los Angeles area amid street protests
LOS ANGELES — U.S. immigration authorities extended activity in Los Angeles area on Saturday in the wake of protests at an federal detention facility and a police response that included tear gas, flash-bangs and the arrest of a union leader. Border Patrol personnel in riot gear and gas masks stood guard outside an industrial park in the city of Paramount, deploying tear gas as bystanders and protesters gathered on medians and across the street, some jeering at authorities while recording the events on smartphones. 'ICE out of Paramount. We see you for what you are,' a woman announced through a megaphone. 'You are not welcome here.' One hand-held sign said, 'No Human Being is Illegal.' The boulevard was closed to traffic as U.S. Border Patrol circulated through the area. ICE representatives did not respond immediately to email inquiries about weekend enforcement activities. Arrests by immigration authorities in Los Angeles come as President Donald Trump and his administration push to fulfill promises to carry out mass deportations across the country. On Friday, Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers arrested more than 40 people as they executed search warrants at multiple locations, including outside a clothing warehouse where a tense scene unfolded as a crowd tried to block agents from driving away. Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass said the activity was meant to 'sow terror' in the nation's second-largest city. In a statement on Saturday, ICE Acting Director Todd Lyons chided Bass for the city's response to protests. 'Mayor Bass took the side of chaos and lawlessness over law enforcement,' Lyons said in a statement. 'Make no mistake, ICE will continue to enforce our nation's immigration laws and arrest criminal illegal aliens.' Protesters gathered Friday evening outside a federal detention center in Los Angeles where lawyers said those arrested had been taken, chanting 'set them free, let them stay!' Other protesters held signs that said 'ICE out of LA!' and led chants and shouted from megaphones. Some scrawled graffiti on the building facade. Federal agents executed search warrants at three locations, including a warehouse in the fashion district of Los Angeles, after a judge found there was probable cause the employer was using fictitious documents for some of its workers, according to representatives for Homeland Security Investigations and the U.S. Attorney's Office. Advocates for immigrant rights say people were detained Friday by immigration authorities outside Home Depot stores and a doughnut shop.