NEW ORLEANS — Following an investigation by Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) New Orleans, a Texas man was sentenced to more than 22 years and six months in prison for conspiracy to commit sex trafficking by force, fraud or coercion in the Eastern District of Louisiana May 21.
According to court documents, in 2021 and 2022, Gregory Massey, 30, and his girlfriend and co-defendant Patricia Hart, forced two adult victims to engage in commercial sex in different locations. Massey and Hart advertised the victims for commercial sex on websites, kept the money the victims made from commercial sex transactions, required the victims to meet a minimum dollar threshold from commercial sex every day, and restricted the victims’ access to food. Massey also tracked the geolocation data on the victims’ phones so that they could not leave and used violence to accomplish the scheme.
Massey pleaded guilty in January. He agreed to pay $128,800 in restitution to the victims. As a result of his plea, Massey must also participate in the sex offender registration and notification program.
Hart pleaded guilty in November 2023 to conspiracy to commit sex trafficking. She is scheduled to be sentenced on June 25.
Massey and Hart were arrested in New Orleans in April 2022; while Massey was in custody, Hart conspired with him on recorded jail calls to engage in sex trafficking, including by locking one victim outside, hitting her, withholding her identity documents and scaring her with a firearm.
The investigation was conducted by HSI New Orleans; the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives; and the Louisiana State Police. U.S. Trial Attorney Melissa E. Bucher of the Criminal Division’s Money Laundering and Asset Recovery Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Maria M. Carboni for the Eastern District of Louisiana are prosecuting the case.
HSI encourages the public to report any suspicious activity through its toll-free tip line at 877-4-HSI-TIP. Callers may remain anonymous.
About HSI
HSI is the principal investigative arm of the Department of Homeland Security, responsible for investigating transnational crime and threats, specifically those criminal organizations that exploit the global infrastructure through which international trade, travel and finance move. HSI’s workforce consists of over 10,000 employees, assigned to 235 offices within the United States, and 93 overseas locations in 56 countries. HSI's international presence represents the Department of Homeland Security’s largest investigative law enforcement presence abroad and one of the largest international footprints in U.S. law enforcement.