Wife accused of helping Tri-Cities man with sex trafficking wants out of jail
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- Federal judge denied Yamilex Atkinson’s release over obstruction concerns.
- Prosecutors allege Atkinson attempted to influence witnesses post-arrest.
- Husband Jonathan Atkinson faces 11 charges tied to child sex trafficking.
A 29-year-old woman allegedly tried to derail an investigation into sex trafficking and forced labor organized by her husband’s business.
Yamilex Atkinson’s alleged maneuvering to convince witnesses to change their stories landed her with federal obstruction charges. And she isn’t being released, despite promises that she wouldn’t violate court orders.
Federal Judge Alex Ekstrom said the risk that she would try to tamper with witnesses is too large.
“I do not trust Mrs. Atkinson to follow any of my orders, because she hasn’t,” he said during a hearing in the Richland courthouse earlier this week.
Atkinson is being held in the Benton County jail while she waits for the federal case for obstruction and attempted obstruction of an investigation into sex trafficking of children to move forward.
She allegedly moved several victims from a secure hotel to her own property, and after her husband’s arrest, tried to get victims and witnesses to support him, federal prosecutors said.
She asked to be let out, promising that she would follow court orders to stay away from witnesses and victims in her case, her attorney Rick Hernandez said.
He argued she had deep ties to the Tri-Cities, so she wasn’t a flight risk. She has lived in the Tri-Cities, along with her large family, for her entire life.
Atkinson didn’t pose a threat to the community, Hernandez said.
“The allegations in this case are serious, but as the court is aware, Mrs. Atkinson is still presumed innocent, and the nature and circumstances of the offense do not permit a pretrial determination of guilt,” Hernandez wrote in his motion.
She planned to live in a Richland home that was rented by her mother.
Sex trafficking investigation
Her husband, Jonathan M. Atkinson, 34, is facing 11 criminal charges, including illicit sexual conduct, production of child pornography, attempted online enticement of minors, sex trafficking of children by force, fraud and coercion as well as forced labor and harboring illegal aliens.
Jonathan Atkinson, who owned CRS Crossroad Services, allegedly manipulated victims for more than a decade, Assistant U.S. Attorney Laurel Holland said during a previous hearing.
He recruited children living in poverty in Honduras as young as 8 years old with promises of housing, schooling, food and gifts, Holland said.
Then he forced them to participate in sexual activities and told them to send sexually explicit videos and photos, if they wanted to come to the United States, according to Holland and court documents.
In the United States, they lived in a four-plex that he and his wife owned, and he forced them to work for his company for unfair wages and to engage in sex acts, Holland said.
If they refused, Jonathan Atkinson would threaten to contact immigration and release videos of them to the pastor of the church they attended, Holland said.
Phone calls, moving, and money
Holland argued that Yamilex Atkinson had an active hand in running the business, and while it’s not clear how much she knew, she did have access to a lot of cash.
After her husband’s arrest on April 8, she went to where many of the victims were being housed after Jonathan Atkinson’s arrest, and took a number of them to her aunt’s home, Holland said.
She also used a prepaid cellphone to contact one of the alleged victims and another witness. She wanted the witness to write a letter of support for her husband and undermine the testimony of the family of the witness, Holland said.