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Men from California, Las Vegas sentenced for human trafficking offenses in Nevada

Police lights LVMPD
Posted at 1:53 PM, Jun 13, 2022
and last updated 2022-06-13 17:44:00-04

LAS VEGAS (KTNV) — A man from California and two men from Las Vegas were sentenced to prison last week in three separate human trafficking-related investigations.

Tyler Sampson

Tyler Sampson, 26, of San Bernardino, Calif., pleaded guilty on March 15 to felon in possession of a firearm and possession of child pornography.

According to court documents, on July 19, 2021, Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department officers were patrolling a portion of Tropicana Avenue where they spotted Sampson’s illegally parked car. A woman spoke with the officers and told them Sampson was a “pimp.”

As officers approached Sampson’s car to investigate, they recovered a loaded .40 caliber Glock 22 pistol. Because Sampson has prior felony convictions in Los Angeles County, he is prohibited from possessing a firearm.

Officers also searched Sampson’s cell phone and found videos of child pornography depicting a suspected human trafficking victim.

Sampson was sentenced to six-and-a-half years in prison followed by 15 years of supervised release by U.S. District Court Judge Andrew P. Gordon.

John Glen Burnett

In a separate case, John Glen Burnett, 59, a Las Vegas resident, was sentenced (also by Judge Gordon) to nine years in prison followed by 10 years of supervised release after pleading guilty on Jan. 11 to coercion and enticement.

According to court documents, on Sept. 17, 2021, Burnett responded to an online prostitution advertisement, exchanged messages with someone he believed to be a 15-years old, and agreed to pay $100 to the girl in exchange for her to engage in sex acts with him.

A couple of hours later, Burnett drove to the agreed upon location, where he was arrested by law enforcement.

Tamarion Williams

Another case involved Tamarion Williams, 22, another Las Vegas resident, who was sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge James C. Mahan to 30 months in prison followed by three years of supervised release. Williams pleaded guilty on March 11 to felon in possession of a firearm.

In 2019, Williams was convicted of pandering and battery with substantial bodily harm in Clark County. As a result of these felony convictions, Williams is not allowed to possess a firearm.

However, according to court documents, in November 2020, Williams used social media to post photographs of himself holding a gun. When Williams' probation officer saw the posts, they notified the police, who obtained a search warrant.

Officers recovered the same .40 caliber semiautomatic pistol shown in the posts and arrested Williams.

These three cases were jointly investigated by the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department, the FBI’s Child Exploitation Task Force, and prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Bianca Pucci.

Anyone who has information about human trafficking should report that information to the National Human Trafficking Hotline toll-free at 1-888-373-7888, which is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week.