BOSTON — A South Carolina man pleaded guilty Monday to participating in a sex trafficking conspiracy that used violence, threats and other forms of coercion to force a woman into commercial sex acts, officials stated Monday.
Alexander Smalls, 27, of Beaufort, South Carolina, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit sex trafficking, according to the Justice Department.
Smalls conspired with Christy Parker, 28, and others to coerce the adult victim into performing repeated commercial sex acts in and around Fall River between January and August 2023, court documents state.
Prosecutors said Smalls and Parker controlled the victim through physical beatings, threats, verbal abuse, intimidation, sleep deprivation and starvation. They also imposed manufactured debts on her and supplied and withheld alcohol, causing her to experience seizures.
The conspirators also threatened to have authorities take away the victim’s minor child, according to prosecutors.
Smalls was incarcerated on unrelated state charges in South Carolina in March 2023, but prosecutors said he continued directing the trafficking operation from jail. He coordinated with Parker, threatened the victim and continued participating in the conspiracy until Parker’s arrest in August 2023.
Authorities said Smalls demanded that Parker and the victim generate at least $1,000 a night. Prison commissary records showed that Smalls received proceeds from the commercial sex operation while incarcerated.
Smalls is scheduled to be sentenced Dec. 9 by U.S. District Judge Angel Kelley. He faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 15 years and a maximum of life in federal prison, according to the Justice Department.
Five co-defendants have been convicted in the case, and four have been sentenced.
Parker previously pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit sex trafficking, two counts of sex trafficking through force, fraud or coercion and one count of sex trafficking of a minor. She is awaiting sentencing.
Homeland Security Investigations and the Fall River Police Department investigated the case.
Quick Facts
- Defendant: Alexander Smalls, 27
- Hometown: Beaufort, South Carolina
- Charge: Conspiracy to commit sex trafficking
- Guilty plea: Aug. 17, 2026
- Criminal activity: January through August 2023
- Primary location: Fall River, Massachusetts
- Co-defendant: Christy Parker, 28
- Victim described: At least one adult woman
- Methods of coercion: Beatings, threats, intimidation, starvation, sleep deprivation and manufactured debts
- Sentencing date: Dec. 9, 2026
- Possible sentence: 15 years to life in federal prison
- Investigating agencies: Homeland Security Investigations and Fall River police