WACO, Texas (AP)--A Central Texas man has been sentenced to 40 years in prison for using cellphones and the Internet to recruit girls into prostitution.
A federal judge in Waco on Wednesday sentenced 27-year-old Jerome Maurice Cole of Killeen. Cole in November pleaded guilty to sex trafficking of children.
Investigators say Cole since 2011 ran a prostitution ring using computers and websites to lure girls and then advertise their sexual services.
Killeen police last May responded to a call from a 16-year-old runaway who was at Cole's home. Police rescued her and during the investigation identified another 16-year-old girl who was forced into prostitution and a third child being recruited.
Cole was arrested Aug. 15 when he arrived at an agreed-upon location in Killeen to pick up the third youth.
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