New Mexico man sentenced to prison for prostituting 16-year-old girl at El Paso motel

A New Mexico man was sentenced to more than a decade in federal prison for driving a 16-year-old girl to El Paso, acting as her "pimp" and prostituting her to other men at a motel, court documents state.

Alexandre Theodore Banta, 37, was sentenced Thursday, Nov. 30, to 12 years and six months in federal prison on one count of coercion or enticement of a minor, U.S. Attorney's Office for the Western District of Texas officials said.

Banta, of Roswell, New Mexico, was also sentenced to 10 years of supervised release after he serves his prison term.

The sentence was handed down by Senior U.S. District Judge David C. Guaderrama at the Albert Armendariz Sr. Federal Courthouse in Downtown El Paso.

He pleaded guilty to the charge Aug. 28.

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Banta, a registered sex offender, was accused of having sex with a 16-year-old girl from Roswell, bringing her to El Paso and then prostituting her to men at a motel, a complaint affidavit states.

"This predator committed heinous sexual acts of his own with a minor, while also forcing her into prostitution out of a motel room and lining his pockets," U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Texas Jaime Esparza said in a statement. "I appreciate the vigilance of those who alerted the El Paso Police Department, and our partner agencies who conducted the ensuing investigation. This case serves as an important reminder that sexual exploitation can and does occur in our communities, and we can all play a role in prevention."

Girl brought to El Paso to be a prostitute

The 16-year-old girl met Banta in April 2022 through a friend in Roswell. The friend, a boy not named in court documents, told the girl he wanted her to "hook up" with Banta.

Banta and the girl had sex in the back of Banta's vehicle, the affidavit states. Banta told the girl he would be taking her to El Paso, the affidavit states.

Banta told the girl he would take her to El Paso to start a new life, the boy told investigators. The boy later claimed to investigators that the girl said she wanted to be a prostitute.

The girl then told Banta she was only 16 years old. Banta replied, "I won't tell, if you don't tell," the affidavit alleges. Banta then took the girl and the boy from Roswell to El Paso.

Banta and the girl had sex in the vehicle as the boy drove, according to court documents and U.S. Attorney's Office officials said. The boy and Banta took turns driving. The boy told investigators he did not know of any sexual activity between the girl and Banta.

The vehicle broke down in Alamogordo, New Mexico. Banta's wife, who is only identified as "witness 1" and "W1" in court documents, drove from El Paso to tow Banta's vehicle, the affidavit states.

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The group arrived in El Paso on April 15, 2020. The girl stayed with Banta and his wife for about 10 days. Banta had sex with the girl about five times during this time, the girl later told investigators, the affidavit states.

Banta allegedly asked the girl if she would like to be a "prostitute" and said he could be her "pimp," the affidavit states.

The next day, Banta told the girl he had found her first customer.

Banta made a deal with a man, who the girl only knew as "Sam," the girl told investigators. Sam was a "handyman" who worked on motel rooms at an El Paso motel.

The man allegedly paid Banta $60 for two hours to have sex with the girl, the affidavit states. Banta took $30 and gave the girl the other $30. However, the girl gave her $30 to Banta's wife, the affidavit states.

The juvenile boy told the girl that she was supposed to be Banta's "sex slave."

Investigators interviewed "Sam" about the encounter with the girl and Banta. He said he was approached by a "mechanic" who brokered a deal for him to have sex with the girl. Banta was identified as the mechanic by the man in a photo lineup.

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The man told investigators he paid $40 for oral sex from the girl and gave the payment to Banta, the affidavit states. He then picked the girl up in his truck April 21, 2020, and took her to the motel, where they had oral sex.

While the affidavit only lists one incident where the girl was prostituted, U.S. Attorney's Office officials said Banta "arranged for the minor to have sex with other individuals in exchange for payment."

Investigators later obtained a Facebook conversation between the girl and Banta's wife from the day the girl met with the man for sex. The girl told the wife she was scared and asked for help, the affidavit states.

In an April 24, 2020, Facebook message, the girl told the wife, "I really want to make some money tonight" and "No one has to no but me and u," the affidavit states.

Witness reports concerns after seeing, hearing about girl being prostituted

A person at the motel reported to El Paso Police Department officers that "they saw a young girl entering and exiting various motel rooms and overheard a tenant of one of the rooms describe a sexual encounter with her," U.S. Attorney's Office officials said.

A Homeland Security Investigations agent met with Banta and his wife at the motel. The wife told the agent she knew the girl through Banta. The wife and Banta claimed the girl told them she was 17 years old.

Banta told the agent he met the girl in Roswell and the girl told him that she was trying to escape cyberbullying, the affidavit states. He added he took her with him to El Paso to try to find her a better life.

Banta provided a statement May 29, 2020, to the New Mexico State Police. He claimed the girl used one of his old cell phones to inform an unknown person that she was a "part-time prostitute," the affidavit states. He added the girl wanted to be a prostitute.

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He also claimed he never touched the girl, the affidavit states.

Banta was then arrested on June 12, 2020, in Roswell on suspicion of sexual assault of a minor. He was served a federal arrest warrant Aug. 18, 2020, and extradited to El Paso, officials said.

"Child exploitation is one of the most heinous crimes in modern society, and this case exemplifies one of the worst. The sentence fits the crime," Homeland Security Investigations El Paso Division Special Agent in Charge Francisco B. Burrola said in a statement. "Our robust partnerships with local, state and federal law enforcement agencies continues to allow HSI special agents to ensure those responsible for victimizing children are removed from our communities and placed behind bars for a long time."

Aaron Martinez may be reached at amartinez1@elpasotimes.com or on Twitter @AMartinezEPT.

This article originally appeared on El Paso Times: New Mexico man sentenced for prostituting teen girl at El Paso motel