CLAYTON COUNTY, Ga. — Attorney General Chris Carr announced on Thursday that the defendants in a human trafficking case are under indictment on more charges.
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Theodore Brown, Jr. was previously indicted in September of last year and has been reindicted on charges of human trafficking, aggravated child molestation and cruelty to children in the first degree.
Daniel Horne was arrested in June. He’s also been indicted on charges of human trafficking, aggravated child molestation and statutory rape.
In 2019, investigators reopened the case and continued the investigation of sexual exploitation of a 15-year-old victim.
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According to officials, during an interview, the 15-year-old victim said she was sold for sex by Theodore Browne Jr. and Christopher Weldon over a period of several months in 2018.
The investigation led to the arrest and indictment of both Browne and Weldon in September 2021.
Therefore, the state’s case against Browne is now being reindicted.
Then in July, Weldon pleaded guilty to one count of human trafficking and one county of statutory rape. He was sentenced to 25 years, including 15 years to be served in prison.
With the allegations, the Human Trafficking Prosecution Unit was able to identify Gregory Benoit, who purchased the victim for sex. He was arrested on July 3.
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In August 2022, Benoit pleaded guilty to one county of human trafficking by solicitation.
He was sentenced to 15 years, with five years to be served in prison. Horne is also listed on the sex offender registry.
If convicted of all charges, Brown faces a maximum sentence of life in prison plus 100 years.
If Horne is convicted of all charges, he faces life in prison plus 40 years.
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