Jury Convicts Little Rock Woman of Conspiracy to Commit Sex Trafficking of a Minor

LITTLE ROCK-A federal jury has convicted Beth Englade of conspiracy to commit sex trafficking of a minor. The trial, which spanned three days, ended on Thursday, October 29, 2026, with guilty a verdict for Englade, 36, of Little Rock. Jonathan D. Ross, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Arkansas, announced the verdict.

Englade was indicted by a federal grand jury on December 7, 2022, and went to trial on one count of conspiracy to commit sex trafficking of a minor.

The evidence at trial proved that in February 2018, a 6-year-old child was taken to Arkansas Children's Hospital due to symptoms that were later determined to be caused by several sexually transmitted diseases. The child was interviewed by an FBI forensic interviewer and disclosed that a man, later determined to be DeMarcus George, had raped her. The child also disclosed that another man, later determined to be Mario Waters, had also raped her in a hotel room.

Doctors at Arkansas Children's Hospital determined that it was unlikely the child had obtained each sexually transmitted disease from the same offender and that there were likely multiple offenders. Officers obtained search warrants for George and Waters' blood and urine. Results indicated that George and Waters tested positive for sexually transmitted diseases that the minor had contracted.

At trial, George testified that Englade assisted him in the trafficking of the minor, including renting hotel rooms where the trafficking took place and making the minor available. George also testified that Englade brought the minor with her when Englade was engaged in prostitution. Financial records presented at trial during the time in question proved Englade did in fact rent numerous hotel rooms. Numerous text messages detailing the relationship of George and Englade were also presented to the jury, including Englade promising George that she would not talk to the police.

Further evidence, including Englade's phone records, confirmed her contacting numerous hotels. The jury also heard Englade's statements to police, which contained numerous inconsistencies.

After deliberating for approximately three hours, the jury found Englade guilty of conspiracy to commit sex trafficking of a minor.

George and Waters were indicted for conspiracy to commit sex trafficking of a minor in 2019. George pleaded guilty on November 10, 2021, and was sentenced to life in prison on November 2, 2022. Waters pleaded guilty on September 29, 2021, and was sentenced to life in prison on March 13, 2023. Waters was killed a short time later while in custody in the Bureau of Prisons.

Englade will be sentenced at a later date. Englade's charges carry a sentence of up to life imprisonment. There is no parole in the federal system.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice and led by the U.S. Attorney's Offices and the Criminal Divisions Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), it marshals federal, state, and local resources to better locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit https://www.justice.gov/psc. Parents are encouraged to always monitor your children's online activity.

This case was investigated by the Little Rock Police Department with assistance from the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Arkansas State Police. This case was prosecuted and tried by Assistant United States Attorneys Kristin Bryant and Ashley Bowen.

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