Adan Vasquez-Rodriguez
An investigation by special agents with the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation Human Trafficking Unit has resulted in the arrest of two men on statutory rape and solicitation charges.
On Sunday, the TBI received information from investigators with the Knoxville Police Department concerning a possible case of human trafficking involving juvenile females. After developing more specific information about the exact location, TBI special agents, assisted by the Elizabethton Police Department, 1st Judicial District Attorney’s Office and the Department of Homeland Security, were able to determine the incident occurred at a motel along Highway 19E in Elizabethton.
The investigation revealed that on Saturday evening, Robelio E. Flores-Rivera, 26, and Adan O. Vasquez-Rodriguez, 34, made contact with two females, ages 14 and 17, and offered them money in exchange for sex.
On Monday evening, both men were arrested and booked into the Carter County Jail. Flores-Rivera is charged with aggravated statutory rape, solicitation of a minor and patronizing prostitution of a minor. Vasquez-Rodriguez is charged with statutory rape, solicitation of a minor and patronizing prostitution of a minor. Both are being held on a $50,000 bond. The investigation remains active and ongoing with additional charges possible.
More information about the issue of human trafficking, along with Tennessee’s efforts to hold traffickers accountable can be found online at www.ITHasToStop.com.
Rebelio Flores-Rivera