Daughter of man who prosecutors say ran human trafficking ring in Northeast Philly pleads guilty to helping with finances
Natoria Jones, 30, pleaded guilty to promoting prostitution after prosecutors said she helped her father, Terrance Jones, manage the payments of his sex-trafficking scheme.
The daughter of a Northeast Philadelphia man who prosecutors say ran a human-trafficking ring for years that trapped vulnerable women, supplied them with drugs, then forced them to have sex with men across the region pleaded guilty Friday to helping manage the finances of the criminal organization.
Natoria Jones, 30, pleaded guilty to promoting prostitution after prosecutors with the Pennsylvania Attorney General’s Office said she helped her father, Terrance Jones, manage the payments of his sex-trafficking scheme for at least three weeks in 2023.
In exchange for Jones’ plea, Senior Deputy Attorney General Zachary Wynkoop withdrew felony charges of conspiracy, participating in a corrupt organization, and promoting unlawful activities.
Wynkoop asked Common Pleas Court Judge Zachary Shaffer to defer Jones’ sentencing until after the June trial of her father, Terrance Jones — the alleged ringleader of the criminal enterprise — and three of his associates.
The plea marks the latest development in the sweeping indictment brought by the attorney general’s office in 2024 in which officials charged Terrance Jones, 54, and several of his associates with operating a human-trafficking ring across the region for more than a decade.
For 12 years, Terrance Jones, of Lawndale, marketed what he called “GFE” or “the Girlfriend Experience” online and recruited women in their 20s — many battling addiction and struggling to find stable housing or income, authorities said.
When women contacted the operation, prosecutors said, Terrance Jones would impersonate a woman, raising the pitch of his voice and introducing himself as “Julie” or “Julia” to build trust. He promised to send a driver to pick them up for “dates” where they could earn more than $250 and obtain drugs, officials said. He used the women to lure other victims who were addicted to drugs into the scheme, telling one confidant that he “could ‘wash em up’ and make money with them,” according to the affidavit of probable cause for Jones’ arrest.
“He made these women feel worthless. He controlled them, manipulated them, and, in a way, programmed them to feel like this was their only option,” then-Attorney General Michelle Henry said in announcing the charges.
Prosecutors and Pennsylvania State Police began investigating in 2021 after a woman who they said had been trafficked by Terrance Jones reported the abuse.
After meeting with the woman, officials conducted wiretaps, acted as undercover sex workers and buyers, and tracked down his clients, the affidavit said. Across the three-year investigation, officials said they found that the operation crossed through the Philadelphia suburbs and into New Jersey, and that over just 10 days in 2023, Terrance Jones arranged 78 “dates” — and pocketed most of the funds.
He was charged with trafficking individuals, involuntary servitude, running a corrupt organization, conspiracy, and related crimes. He remains in custody, held on $2 million bail.
Three of Terrance Jones’ business partners — Thomas Reilly, Joseph Franklin, and Raheem Smith — are charged with running a corrupt organization, conspiracy, and related crimes, and are scheduled to go to trial with him in June.
Another associate, James Rudolph, a driver who officials said transported women to their “dates,” pleaded guilty to conspiracy to promote a house of prostitution last year. He’s scheduled to be sentenced later this month.
In a rare move, prosecutors as part of the indictment also criminally charged 16 men who paid Terrance Jones for sex with the women. While the charges against some of the men have been dismissed, at least nine have pleaded guilty to promoting or patronizing prostitution and are scheduled to be sentenced next month.
Among Terrance Jones’ business partners, was also his daughter, Natoria, who handled some of the financials and payments between the women and customers. Her attorney Jonathan D. Consadene declined to comment Friday.
Senior Deputy Attorney General Erik Olsen said several factors influenced the plea agreement.
“There’s some mitigation as to how she got pulled into this,” Olsen said, adding that more details would emerge at trial in June.