A man has been sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole after previously being convicted of trafficking a 16-year-old girl to Atlanta, according to Georgia Attorney General Chris Carr.
This comes after co-defendant Jameesha Harris, who admitted to trafficking the same victim, received a 25-year prison sentence in May.
According to the attorney general’s office, Anthony Holmes, 33, from Cleveland, Ohio, drove the victim from South Carolina to Atlanta for sex work.
On August 2, 2023, a Greene County sheriff’s officer attempted to stop an automobile with an illegal window tint when it came to a stop at the intersection of GA-15 and GA-77. However, Holmes, who was driving, accelerated, resulting in a police chase, according to the attorney general’s office.
Prosecutors claim that once Holmes crossed into Taliaferro County from Greene County, the Taliaferro County sheriff’s office joined the chase and helped force the automobile to stop.
The attorney general’s office says Harris and the victim were both passengers in the vehicle.
During the first inquiry, deputies discovered that the 16-year-old girl had been reported missing in South Carolina after her family reported her missing in Ohio.
Law enforcement also found a gun, over 28 grams of cocaine ready for distribution, and more than an ounce of marijuana.
Holmes was convicted of all charges, including people trafficking, cocaine trafficking, marijuana possession, and other firearms offenses.
“This sentence demonstrates the severity of the crimes committed by Anthony Holmes and the abuse and exploitation endured by this survivor,” Carr said in a statement. “Let this send a message to anyone who seeks to engage in human trafficking in our state – you will be identified and held accountable to the fullest extent of the law.”