A Central Florida woman was running a sex trafficking operation, and her lover and her son were both involved and also arrested. The Tampa Bay woman accused of being a “madam” allegedly smuggled women into the country and held them hostage under threat of violence, forcing them into sex work.
After an investigation, Lina Payne was arrested by Florida Department of Law Enforcement investigators. She apparently ran the sex trafficking operation in both Hillsborough County and Manatee County. The Florida Human Trafficking Strike Team and local law enforcement were involved in the multiagency operation.
According to authorities, Payne recruited women from Columbia and Venezuela under promises of work opportunities, but then held the victims hostage and forced them into sex work to pay off travel debts, all under threat of violence.
The Strike Team’s investigation of Payne also resulted in the arrests of accomplices Sebastian Jurado, Payne’s boyfriend, and Andres Payne, Payne’s son. Payne charged the women recruited from Venezuela and Colombia between $40,000 and $50,000 to be smuggled across the border and into the United States.
Payne promised the women legitimate work, but instead they were held in debt bondage and coerced to perform sex acts for money and pay the proceeds to the criminal organization. Payne often made threats of physical violence against the women and their families in other countries, according to law enforcement.
With the assistance of the Florida Human Trafficking Strike Team, authorities are in contact with at least 10 victims from the trafficking ring. The number of victims is expected to increase as the investigation continues and additional evidence is analyzed.
The Florida Human Trafficking Strike Team is already assisting local law enforcement with more than 20 human trafficking cases and making contact with nearly 40 victims, including 10 victims at the center of the Lina Payne investigation.
Each defendant faces multiple felony charges. Attorney General Ashley Moody’s Office of Statewide Prosecution will prosecute these cases.
To report suspicious activity, call the Florida Human Trafficking Hotline at 855-FLA-SAFE.
