A Dallas man is accused of forcing two teenage girls into prostitution in New York, beating them and having his nickname, “Blue Cheese,” tattooed on their faces.
Prosecutors say Donald Roberson, 29, drove two girls, ages 17 and 18, from Dallas to Brooklyn, where he forced them to walk Penn Track, a notorious prostitution market in East New York, in August. He assaulted both girls, punching them in the face, stabbing one with scissors and burning her with a torch lighter.
On Wednesday, Roberson was indicted on more than a dozen charges, including sex trafficking of a child, promotion of prostitution, assault, criminal possession of a weapon, sexual misconduct and sexual abuse, according to a news release from the Brooklyn district attorney’s office. He is being held without bail.
Roberson met the 17-year-old girl through Instagram, and she and the 18-year-old agreed to go with him to New York, prosecutors say. They drove together, making several stops along the way. When they arrived on Aug. 16, Roberson rented a room at the Hotel Sunborn in East New York, forced them to walk Penn Track and kept the money they made.
After forcing the girls to have “Blue Cheese” tattooed on their faces, Roberson and the 17-year-old got into a fight at McCarren Park, according to the news release. Prosecutors say Roberson punched and kicked the girl in the face and pulled her hair, causing her to have a seizure. He also stabbed her in the side with a pair of scissors, prosecutors said in the release.
On Aug. 22, the victim was treated at a hospital for a viral throat infection from being forced to perform sex acts. After leaving the hospital, prosecutors say Roberson choked and punched the 18-year-old in the face until she was crying and unable to breathe.
One day later, Roberson and the 17-year-old got into an argument, and the girl locked herself in Roberson’s car. Roberson responded by shattering a car window, cutting her with shards, say prosecutors. He then burned her leg with a torch lighter, they say.
The girl managed to text someone in Texas with the name, address of the hotel and room number. When police arrived, they found her in the parking lot and arrested Roberson.
“This defendant allegedly subjected two young women to horrific abuse, treating them as his personal property by branding them with his nickname and forcing them into a life of exploitation and violence,” Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzales said in the release. “The brutality these victims endured is appalling, and we will work diligently to ensure that he is held accountable for the inhumanity he inflicted.”
Roberson is scheduled to return to court on Oct. 23.
