A Bronx man who trafficked and abused eight women — including some in foster care — was sentenced to 18 years in state prison on Thursday.
Kareem “Napoleon” Mitchell, 39, recruited women on Facebook and Instagram between November 2018 and February 2022, forcing them to sleep with men in cars and hotels citywide through brutal verbal and physical abuse.
Two of Mitchell’s eight victims were advertised for sex within a month of being entrusted in the care of his wife, Sharice Mitchell, 52, a New York-certified foster parent. She was previously sentenced to six years. The couple pleaded guilty to sex trafficking charges in May.
Sharice lied about living with her husband when she applied to become a foster parent, according to prosecutors, omitting that her charges would be living with someone federally convicted of forcing a teenager into prostitution in 2008 and related charges.
Kareem forced his victims to call him “daddy” and each other “wifey,” according to court records. He threatened them until the day of his and his wife’s February 2022 arrest — telling one, “I’m going to pop you in the face, you dumb b—h. Get in the car” — before police took him into custody.
Authorities unveiled the couple’s sick scheme during a nine-month investigation that included intercepting their communications and monitoring their physical movements and Instagram, Facebook, CashApp and Zelle records.
Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg said the case highlights the pervasiveness of human trafficking in New York.
“Kareem and Sharice Mitchell preyed on young New Yorkers, including two entrusted to their care,” Bragg said.
“The vulnerabilities exploited by the Mitchells — youth, homelessness, isolation — are common among trafficking survivors,” he added. “Those same vulnerabilities often prevent survivors from coming forward to law enforcement.”
Since taking office, the DA has moved to clear the criminal records of sex trafficking victims forced into crime by their abusers, preventing them from seeking help when the state views them as criminals and not victims. Legislation passed in 2021 allowed trafficking victims to petition the courts to vacate their convictions.
People without a solid support network, like the young women abused by the Mitchells, are prime targets for traffickers, experts say. The vast majority of those trapped in the trade are Black and Hispanic women, with traffickers recruiting children as young as 12, according to the National Human Trafficking Resource Center.
Bragg said state legislators need to eliminate the criminal statute of limitations so prosecutors can hold traffickers to account when their victims wait to come forward, as is commonly the case.
“I call on the legislature to confront the realities of sex trafficking in New York State: help us dismantle operations like these by eliminating the criminal statute of limitations,” the prosecutor said.
Lawyers for the Mitchells did not immediately respond to requests seeking comment.