A Connecticut man will spend decades behind bars for sex trafficking at the 2020 Super Bowl in Miami.
According to the Department of Justice, 48-year-old Edward Walker was sentenced to 25 years in prison Thursday for crimes committed in early January, just days before the sports event. Prosecutors accused the New Haven resident of transporting two women and a 17-year-old girl to the Miami area to engage in commercial sex. Authorities say Walker emotionally and financially coerced the women into selling their bodies in exchange for money, all of which he kept.
Federal investigators also claim they found evidence that Walker intended to further exploit the victims by transporting them to other cities, including Las Vegas during Mardi Gras as well as Chicago for the NBA All-Star game.
The FBI’s Child Exploitation and Human Trafficking Task Force arrested Walker in February 2020, and charged him with multiple sex crimes. In October 2021, he was found guilty of sex trafficking by force and coercion, sex trafficking of a minor and by force and coercion, and transporting a person for sexual activity.
According to the US Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida, Walker is also required to serve a 25-year term of supervised release following his incarceration.
The man will now be transported back to Connecticut, where he will face child pornography charges.
You can report suspected instances of sex trafficking by calling 1-888-373-7888, texting BeFree to 233733, or clicking “live chat” at the Polaris Project website.
