Cedar Rapids Felon Faces Human Trafficking Charges

A Cedar Rapids man who skipped the state after being granted bond by Sixth Judicial District Judge Mitchell Turner now faces human trafficking charges in South Carolina.

The Gazette reports that 23-year old Mark Spicer was arrested Saturday in Myrtle Beach on assault, third-degree battery and trafficking in humans in connection with a 16-year-old girl being advertised on the internet for sex, according police reports.

Earlier this year, First Assistant Linn County Attorney Nick Maybanks asked an Iowa judge to hold Spicer without bond pending his hearing in Linn County on burglary charges.

But despite protests from prosecutors, Sixth Judicial District Judge Mitchell Turner instead granted Spicer a $5,000 bond. Spicer paid on June 1 and then went missing sometime in July.

Police said Spicer and an accomplice traveled with the 16 year old girl from Iowa to Chicago, Nashville and Atlanta before coming to Myrtle Beach.

They reportedly took the girl to a Walmart on Aug. 14 where money was exchanged for sex. The 16-year-old told police Spicer was aware that she was performing sex acts, according to the warrants. The girl said the money was to support them during their trip.

[source: Gazette]