A Mississippi man charged with trafficking two teen girls in Pensacola was scheduled to stand trial in October after a hearing Monday.
The Office of the State Attorney charged 53-year-old Biloxi, Mississippi, man Mark Wells in March with two counts of forced labor by human trafficking and two counts of contributing to the delinquency of a minor after allegedly taking a 15-year-old and 16-year-old from their home and bringing them to Pensacola.
Wells was given a jury selection date of Oct. 28 where the attorneys and judge are scheduled to finalize a trial date for the final week of October.
He faces up to 60 years in state prison if convicted as charged.
Mark Wells allegedly took the teen girls from Gulfport, Mississippi
According to court records, one of the teens called law enforcement from the Hampton Inn and Suites on Plantation Road asking for help. When deputies arrived, she said Wells took her and her sister from their home in Gulfport, Mississippi.
The girls told law enforcement that Wells “gave them $100” before taking them to the Pensacola hotel. Wells also reportedly told the girls he would pay them $50 to work at his company.
“She advised she was unsure what they would be doing but was assured by Wells that he would teach them the job later,” court records say.
Wells then left the hotel after one of the girls received a call from the Gulfport Police Department, saying “he didn’t want to deal with any cops.”
Mark Wells was previously the children’s landlord
According to court records, the mother of the two teens told law enforcement that she never gave permission for Wells to take the teens out of the state.
Additionally, she stated Wells was her previous landlord, which is how he knew the girls.
Since Wells left the hotel room, investigators with the Department of Children and Families were able to take custody of both.
This article originally appeared on Pensacola News Journal: Pensacola teen trafficking trial scheduled for Mississippi’s Mark Wells
Source Agencies
