A pimp whose arrest was emblematic of a new approach Denver police have taken to prostitution cases was sentenced to 16 years in prison today after pleading guilty.

Hassan Mayo, 39, pleaded guilty to one count of human trafficking in Denver District Court and was sentenced immediately. He was originally charged with pimping and prostitution, in addition to human trafficking. Police said he ran a prostitution ring and had strong-armed one woman into working for him before selling her to another pimp for $400.

Mayo was arrested in the summer of 2010 during a sweep that started with the arrest of one prostitute. Rather than charging the woman, Denver detectives employed a new tack: They approached the case as a human-trafficking investigation — with the prostitute as a witness — and worked backward until they reached Mayo. He became the first person charged with human trafficking in Denver, following a $290,000 grant the police department received to work with federal authorities on human trafficking cases.

Denver prosecutors also charged another man, Nathaniel Maxey, in connection with the case. He pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit pimping and is currently on intensively supervised probation.

John Ingold: 303-954-1068 or jingold@denverpost.com