Backpage CEO Faces Prison Time After Pleading Guilty

Many are calling it a step in the right direction. The CEO of Backpage.com has pleaded guilty in Texas.

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton said Thursday his office's prosecution of Backpage.com has resulted in the company pleading guilty to human trafficking in Texas and its CEO, Carl Ferrer, pleading guilty to money laundering.

Ferrer will be sentenced to up to five years in prison once he's fulfilled the terms of his plea agreement with Paxton's office. His cooperation in the ongoing investigation into Backpage could lead to other criminal charges against individuals associated with the company.

Backpage, the largest online sex trafficking marketplace in the world, facilitated the sex trafficking of innocent women and children through sites it ran for 943 locations in 97 countries and 17 languages. Furthermore, it was involved in 73 percent of all child trafficking cases reported to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, according to Paxton's office.

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