South Texas woman convicted of sex trafficking of a minor



Keep clicking to learn more about sex trafficking in Texas. less Maria Candelaria Losoya, 55, of Brownsville, Texas pleaded guilty to one count of sex trafficking that involved a nine-year-old girl, according to the U.S. Department of Justice.

Keep clicking to learn more ... more Maria Candelaria Losoya, 55, of Brownsville, Texas pleaded guilty to one count of sex trafficking that involved a nine-year-old girl, according to the U.S. Department of Justice. Image 1 of / 21 Caption Close South Texas woman convicted of sex trafficking of a minor 1 / 21 Back to Gallery

A 55-year-old Brownsville woman admitted to a federal judge on Tuesday that she trafficked a 9-year-old victim for sex, starting in 2012.

Maria Candelaria Losoya told U.S. Magistrate Judge B. Janice Ellington that she started trafficking the girl in Brownsville in 2012 for money.

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Losoya is scheduled to be sentenced on Nov. 16 where she'll face a minimum of 15 years in federal prison and a $250,000 maximum fine.

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If she does complete a prison term, Losoya also faces a maximum of life on supervised release where the courts can impose a number of special conditions designed to protect children. She may also be prohibited from using the Internet and will be required to register as a sex offender.

"Rescuing the children from these situations is our immediate concern," Mark Dawson, a special agent in charge of Immigration and Customs Enforcement's Homeland Security Investigations in Houston said in a press release. "While we cannot give back the innocence that's been stolen from them, we can make sure that those who commit these horrible crimes are brought to justice."