-
Jake Knight Jones, 39
Monday, March 1, the Beaumont Police Department received a tip from the National Human Trafficking Hotline in reference to two 16-year-old girls being commercially sexually exploited in Beaumont, according to a news release.
BPD’s Special Crimes Unit began investigating information given through the tip and were able to identify the teen victims, as well as locate them via websites used for sexual exploitation. With assistance from BPD’s Narcotics Division, Nederland P.D., Groves P.D. and other area law enforcement, the victims were safely recovered on Wednesday, March 3 at a residence in Groves.
The investigation continued, and on Friday, March 5, two arrest warrants for trafficking of a person under the age of 18 were issued for Jake Knight Jones, a 39-year-old Port Arthur resident. On Monday, March 8, the Jefferson County Warrant Division and the US Marshall Service took Jones into custody on his two trafficking warrants. He was transported to the Jefferson County Jail where his bonds for these offenses total $1 million.
The Beaumont Police Department would like to thank the many law enforcement agencies listed above for their assistance and collaboration in this quickly evolving case.
From BPD:
"We would also like to thank the anonymous citizen who had the courage to submit the information they had about this crime to the National Human Trafficking Hotline, which ultimately led to the recovery of two minors and the arrest of a trafficker!"