Lansing man convicted on sex trafficking charges

GRAND RAPIDS – A Lansing man pleaded guilty in federal court on Tuesday to three counts of sex trafficking girls and women and transporting them across state lines as part of an interstate prostitution ring.

Tyrone Smith, 45, faces a minimum sentence of 15 years in federal prison with a maximum of 25 years when he is sentenced in April 2016.

Smith has already served 15 years in state prison for second degree murder. When he was released, he began recruiting women in Lansing for his interstate commercial sex operation, according to a news release from the Department of Justice.

Smith admitted to recruiting one woman in December 2012, providing her with heroin, marketing her for sex online and arranging for men to pay her for sex in Lansing, Chicago and other cities over a two-year period, according to the release. He admitted to doing the same to a 17-year-old girl in December 2014.

This is the third sex trafficking conviction in the Western District of Michigan, following cases against Eddie Jackson of Grand Rapids and Christopher Bryant of Detroit.

The conviction was a result of a joint investigation led by the FBI, Ingham County Sheriff’s Office and the East Lansing Police Department with assistance from the Michigan State Police.

Contact Alexander Alusheff at (517) 388-5973 or aalusheff@lsj.com. Follow him on Twitter @alexalusheff.