Brothers Bogacski Thomas and Tavarus Ballard, both 24, were arrested in South Miami Tuesday on charges they kidnapped a 16-year-old girl and forced her into prostitution. She was forced to have sex with approximately two dozen men every day, the New York Daily News reports.
Thomas and Ballard are facing several charges, including human trafficking, drug possession and robbery. A Miami state attorney told WBFS-TV that the teenage girl underwent a “horrific two-week ordeal” in January during her time as a prostitute, while her captors used the money to buy hotel rooms, food and drugs.
Her captors beat her, WTVJ-TV reported, and threatened to kill her entire family if the girl tried to escape. They drugged her with Molly, cocaine and marijuana during her captivity.
“She to them was nothing more than a walking machine,” Fernandez Rundle, a Miami-Dade state attorney, said. “No dignity, not a human being, not a young girl, a cash machine. That’s how these predators look at them.”
The victim was able to escape with another girl who police believe was Thomas’ girlfriend, although police are not sure if the supposed girlfriend was an accomplice to the teenager’s kidnapping or a victim as well. Thomas and Ballard are being held without bond.
Read more at the New York Daily News.