March 26, 2019
For Immediate Release
Contact: Tim Connolly 508-688-5565
WORCESTER — Two men, convicted by a jury in Worcester Superior Court last week in a human trafficking case, were sentenced to prison today, according to the Worcester County District Attorney’s Office.
Angelo Gonzalez, 36, of Worcester was sentenced to 7 to 9 years in state prison and was ordered to register as a sex offender. He was found guilty on Friday of human trafficking for sexual servitude and five counts of deriving support from prostitution. The jury found him not guilty of four other counts of human trafficking.
Robert L. Nieves, 25, of Southbridge was sentenced to 6 to 8 years in state prison. He was found guilty of five counts of deriving support from prostitution. The jury found him not guilty of five counts of human trafficking for sexual servitude.
Judge David Ricciardone imposed the sentences. Assistant District Attorney Timothy A. Westerman recommended sentences of 10 to 12 years for Mr. Gonzalez and 8 to 10 years for Mr. Nieves.
The defendants were charged in 2016 after an investigation by the Worcester Police Gang Unit and the WPD Detective Bureau, with assistance from the Worcester County Sheriff’s Office. The victims in the case were supplied drugs by the defendants in exchange for performing sex acts for money with others.
In related cases, Fabian Beltran, 25, of Worcester was sentenced in June to 6 to 8 years in state prison after a Superior Court jury found him guilty of human trafficking for sexual servitude and deriving support from prostitution. A co-defendant was found not guilty of the same charges. Elvin Gonzalez, the brother of Angelo Gonzalez, is awaiting trial on seven counts of human trafficking for sexual servitude, five counts deriving support from prostitution, rape, two counts of assault and battery with a dangerous weapon and assault and battery on a pregnant person.