PANAMA CITY, FLORIDA — A human trafficker who tracked down and kidnapped a victim who cooperated with the FBI was sentenced to life in prison for kidnapping and retaliation, officials said.
The defendant, Jacobo Feliciano-Francisco, a/k/a “Kiko”, age 32, was sentenced in U.S. District Court on Wednesday to life in prison after he was convicted of kidnapping, retaliating against a witness, conspiracy, and transportation of a person in interstate commerce for prostitution.
The female victim in this case had previously cooperated with the FBI after being forced and coerced by others to work as a prostitute between 2009 and 2011, officials said.
Due to that cooperation, authorities said a total of 13 individuals were convicted in Tennessee and Kentucky of various federal sex-trafficking and prostitution criminal charges. Following her cooperation with law enforcement, the victim and her family were relocated to Panama City Beach, Florida, out of concern for their safety, officials said.
In retaliation for her cooperation as a prior Federal witness, Feliciano-Francisco and others tracked down her location, repeatedly threatened the physical safety of both her and her family, kidnapped her, and transported her to a brothel in Hattiesburg, Mississippi, with the intent that she would be forced back into prostitution, officials said.
During her kidnapping, Feliciano-Francisco not only verbally threatened and intimidated the victim, but he physically terrorized and humiliated her when he sexually assaulted her.
After arriving in Hattiesburg, the victim escaped Feliciano-Francisco and led police back to the brothel where he was arrested.
“Despite those threats, however, the victim showed tremendous bravery in coming forward to help bring this defendant to justice. We commend her for her courage and pledge to continue this important fight against this modern form of slavery,” said U.S. Attorney Pamela Marsh.