Federal Jury Finds Charlotte Man Guilty of Sex Trafficking a Minor

CHARLOTTE, N.C. - A federal jury in Charlotte returned a guilty verdict today against Marvin Qualls, 42, of Spencer, N.C., for sex trafficking a 16-year-old female victim, announced Russ Ferguson, U.S. Attorney for the Western District of North Carolina. Qualls was convicted of conspiracy to sex traffic a minor and sex trafficking of a minor. Qualls's co-defendant, Out Ekong, 22, previously pleaded guilty to sex trafficking a minor.

"Those who prey on vulnerable teenagers deserve to be in prison," said U.S. Attorney Russ Ferguson. "I am proud of the prosecutors in my office who worked night-and-day to make sure Qualls and Ekong's days of preying on children are over."

"This guilty verdict reflects the strength of the FBI's partnership with the U.S. Attorney's Office and the Gaston County Sheriff's Office who together worked tirelessly on this case. Combating the trafficking of children requires a unified response, and we will continue to identify victims, pursue offenders, and ensure that those who exploit the most vulnerable are brought to justice," said Reid Davis, the FBI Charlotte Special Agent in Charge.

According to filed documents, evidence presented at trial, and witness testimony, between December 2023 and January 2024, Qualls and Ekong engaged in a conspiracy to sex traffic a 16-year-old victim, who had run away from home. Trial evidence established that Qualls met the minor at work, and soon after began to sex traffic the victim with Ekong, knowing she was underage. In trafficking the victim, the two men posted advertisements of the minor on commercial sex websites, set prices and arranged the minor victim's sexual encounters with customers, booked hotels rooms where the encounters took place, and acted as security while the victim engaged in commercial sex transactions. Qualls and Ekong traveled with the victim across North and South Carolina for her to engage in commercial sex transactions, and the two men kept the money the victim earned from these commercial sexual encounters.

Both Qualls and Ekong will both remain in federal custody until they are sentenced at a later date. The conspiracy to conspiracy to sex traffic a minor carries a maximum sentence of life in prison. The charge of sex trafficking of a minor carries a minimum term of 10 years and a maximum term of life in prison.

In making the announcement, U.S. Attorney Ferguson thanked the FBI's Human Trafficking Task Force, which includes the FBI, the Gaston County Sheriff's Office, and the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department.

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Stephanie Spaugh and Timothy Sielaff are prosecuting the case.

If you are the victim of human trafficking or may have information about a potential trafficking situation, please call the FBI, local law enforcement, or the National Human Trafficking Resource Center (NHTRC) at 1-888-373-7888. NHTRC is a national, toll-free hotline, with specialists available to answer calls from anywhere in the country, 24 hours a day, seven days a week, every day of the year related to potential trafficking victims, suspicious behaviors, and/or locations where trafficking is suspected to occur. To submit a tip to the NHTRC online please visit https://humantraffickinghotline.org/report-traffickingLinks to other government and non-government sites will typically appear with the "external link" icon to indicate that you are leaving the Department of Justice website when you click the link..