GirlsDoPorn: Extra long prison sentence for owner

The operator of the former porn websites GirlsDoPorn and GirlsDoToys, Michael Pratt, must spend a long time in prison despite his confession. US Federal District Judge Janis Sammartino imposed 27 years in prison (324 months) on Monday, followed by ten years of supervision. The judge thus went well beyond the sentence of 260 months (21 years and eight months) requested by the prosecution, which is a rare occurrence. The convicted man is not charged with any improper sexual acts.

On the contrary, Pratt has confessed to human trafficking and conspiracy. He and his associates misled numerous young women and had them abused by accomplice Ruben Andre Garcia. Actresses were recruited for pornographic films via misleading classified ads for models, among other things. These were promised to be distributed on DVD only in Australia. In fact, they were regularly published on the company's own websites and sometimes also on larger porn portals for advertising purposes.

They were mostly filmed in hotels in San Diego. Women who wanted to stop filming were put under pressure. They were threatened with legal action for breach of their filming contract or with the cancellation of their free airline tickets for the trip home. Camera stands in the door area of the filming rooms are said to have made it impossible to run away quickly.

Appeal only possible against penalty amount

Pratt was one of the FBI's most wanted persons until he was arrested in Spain in 2022. The American pleaded guilty and thus waived his right to appeal; he was only granted an appeal against the sentence if it was to exceed the 260 months demanded by the prosecution. In fact, it has now become 324 months. The man can appeal against this, but the public prosecutor can then argue for the more severe sentence.

Before the sentence was handed down, 40 victims were heard in public. Some of them described serious consequences with depression, some with suicide attempts, anxiety and post-traumatic stress disorders, substance abuse, loss of work and partners, harassment and stalking. The shame has led some to change their names and even resort to plastic surgery.

Several accomplices have already been convicted. Garcia, who sexually abused the women and also produced the porn films, was sentenced to 20 years in prison in 2021. New Zealander Matthew Isaac Wolfe, who shot around 100 videos himself and is considered Pratt's most important collaborator, served 14 years last year. Cameraman Theodore Gyi got away with four years in 2022. The confessed office manager Valerie Moser, who looked after and chauffeured the actresses and took care of the bookkeeping, is due to receive her sentence on Friday. The criminal proceedings against another woman, who had also pleaded guilty, have been discontinued in 2021.

The criminal proceedings were or are being conducted at the US Federal District Court for Southern California under case number 19-CR-4488.

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