ROCHESTER — Zaylik Harrison, 21, of Rochester, pleaded guilty to sex trafficking of a minor, before U.S. District Judge Charles J. Siragusa. The charge carries minimum penalty of 10 years in prison, a maximum of life and a $250,000 fine. The defendant will also have to register as a sex offender.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Kyle P. Rossi, who is handling the case, stated that between Sept. 30, 2016, and Oct. 6, 2016, Harrison recruited a teenaged girl to engage in commercial sex acts at the Gates Motel, on Buffalo Road in Gates. The defendant then posted advertisements for the minor on Backpage.com. Harrison rented rooms in the motel where the victim was forced to engage in prostitution activities over several days with adult males. The defendant kept the proceeds of those activities.
The plea is the result of an investigation by Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Homeland Security Investigations, under the direction of Acting Special Agent-in-Charge Kevin Kelly; the Monroe County Sheriff’s Office, under the direction of Patrick O’Flynn; the Erie County Sheriff’s Office, under the direction of Timothy Howard; the Gates Police Department, under the direction of Chief James VanBrederode; the Monroe County District Attorney’s Office, under the direction of Sandra Doorley; and the Erie County District Attorney’s Office, under the direction of John Flynn.
Sentencing is scheduled for June 8.
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