Four Clinton Hill Residents Face 32 Counts Of Kidnapping, Rape And Attempted Prostitution of 13-Year-Old Girls

Up to 25 years in prison — that’s the amount of jail time faced by each of the four defendants from Clinton Hill if convicted of just one (the top count) of the 32 counts of kidnapping, rape, promoting prostitution, unlawful imprisonment, and endangering the welfare of a child that they were indicted on, in connection with the August 30, 2014 kidnapping of two 13-year-old girls.

The indictment came last Friday, February 27 in Brooklyn Supreme Court, where Marcus Sumpter, 25, Joann Bailey, 55, and Jerry Brown, 57, were present. The fourth defendant is still being sought.

According to the Brooklyn District Attorney’s office, Sumpter allegedly spotted the girls near the Franklin Avenue C station and invited them to his apartment at 463 Classon Avenue, where he had sex with them. After they left the next morning, he reportedly followed them and “allegedly told them they could make money working as prostitutes. They went back to the apartment and another defendant allegedly took scantily clad photos of them and attempted to post their pictures on Craigslist.”

During this time, the suspects also took control of the girls’ cell phones.

Fortunately, this was when the tide turned:

[DA Ken Thompson] added that, according to the investigation, a concerned relative texted one of the teens and allegedly received a text in return stating: “Want a date?” from one of the defendants, who had taken control of the girls’ phones. The relative then replied, “Yes” and asked for the price and the location. He went to the apartment, paid for the alleged services and retrieved the girl. The other girl was subsequently found by her relatives and removed from the premises.

Sumpter is being held without bail, Bailey’s bail was set at $100,000 cash or $50,000 bond, and Brown’s bail was set at $50,000 cash or $25,000 bond.

Their next court date is April 22.

Both Thompson and NYPD Commissioner Bill Bratton lauded the indictment, with Thompson saying that “these defendants are accused of disgraceful actions involving young girls who should be protected, not exploited, by men who should know better. Few crimes are as dehumanizing and degrading as prostitution. Luckily, the young girls who were abducted are now safe and their abusers will now face justice.”

Bratton concurred, stating that “the sexual exploitation of children affects not only the victim and their family, but society as a whole. Thanks to the work of the NYPD investigators and our law enforcement partners at the Brooklyn District Attorney’s Office, these alleged abductors will now answer for their actions.”