SAN ANTONIO – A nearly two-year-long investigation by the San Antonio Police Department revealed that a man and woman forced minors into prostitution and sold them for sex through online escort service ads, according to an arrest affidavit obtained by KSAT 12 on Friday.
Keary Douglas Adams, 28, and Katrices Ann Bates, 20, are facing a charge of trafficking of persons -- a first-degree felony -- after three victims came forward to police.
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Officers with SAPD's Special Victims and Vice units first learned of the prostitution ring in May 2017 when they conducted a "human trafficking recovery operation" and saw a man drive a girl to a hotel.
After rescuing her at the hotel, the girl, now 18, told police she was forced into prostitution by Adams and Bates and that Adams had "other girls working for him as prostitutes," according to the affidavit.
The girl said Adams would beat Bates in front of her and the other girls to intimidate them. She said Bates worked closely with Adams by taking pictures of the prostitutes and sharing them on adult escort websites, according to the affidavit.
The second victim, a 22-year-old woman, said Adams shot her after she refused to work for him as a prostitute. She said she only worked for Adams as a prostitute out of fear. She also said he is a Bloods gang member.
She said Adams referred to Bates as his "bottom girl," a slang term used to describe a woman who has worked with -- or otherwise helped -- a pimp for a long amount of time.
In separate interviews, the two victims told police that Adams set the rates for their sex with unknown male clients, and later collected the money from them.
Police said a third victim, who is 15 years old, came forward and told detectives that she first met Bates on Facebook and was later introduced to Adams.
The girl described Adams as an "Old G" and a "dangerous man" who made "stacks of money" with his prostitution rings. She told police that Adams and Bates tried to convince her to be a prostitute but she denied their requests.
While she did not have sex for money, the girl said men paid for her company during their time with Bates. She told police she also went with Adams to hotels where Bates and other prostitutes met their clients, according to the affidavit.
Adams was arrested Sept. 10 on two counts of aggravated robbery and is still in the Bexar County Jail on a $150,000 bail, jail officials told KSAT.com.
While Adams has yet to be formally charged, SAPD officials told KSAT.com that "the case is actively under investigation."
According to online records, Adams has previous arrests for aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, aggravated robbery, felon in possession of a firearm and theft of a firearm.
Bates was taken into custody on the trafficking charge on Thursday. Her bail has been set at $35,000.