Sex trafficking charge dismissed due to ‘insufficient evidence’

Clark County prosecutors person declined to prosecute a California antheral arrested successful March connected suspicion of enactment trafficking a teen successful Las Vegas.

Clark County District Attorney Steve Wolfson said grounds simply didn’t enactment a prosecution of Elijah Arruda, 18, of Lancaster.

“Like immoderate different case, we reappraisal the grounds to find if determination is capable grounds to proceed,” Wolfson wrote successful an email. “In this case, my screening lawyer determined that determination was insufficient grounds to proceed and therefore, we denied prosecution.”

Arruda maintained his innocence to constabulary erstwhile they questioned him March 21 astir his relation with a young pistillate successful Las Vegas who was nether 18. A Las Vegas constabulary serviceman assigned to the Southern Nevada Child Exploitation Task Force wrote successful an apprehension study for Arruda that police, portion conducting an probe connected the Strip astatine Spring Mountain Road, encountered a pistillate younker who “was reported missing from a radical home” recently.

“She ran distant from the radical location astir the opening of March of 2021,” constabulary said. “(She) has been progressive successful prostitution for astir a year.”

The younker said she met a young antheral named “Elijah” connected societal media and had been staying with the individual. The antheral served arsenic a lookout for her erstwhile she was engaged successful prostitution, constabulary claimed. She denied giving the antheral wealth she earned, but past told constabulary that sometimes she gave the antheral a small spot of the money.

Arruda told the serviceman the accusations were false, but helium was arrested and booked astatine the Clark County Detention Center connected counts of surviving from the net of a prostitute, enactment trafficking a kid nether 18, kid maltreatment neglect and first-degree kidnapping. The lawsuit was aboriginal dismissed successful Las Vegas Justice Court.

Contact Glenn Puit by email astatine gpuit@reviewjournal.com. Follow @GlennatRJ connected Twitter.