Crime & Safety

Missouri Man Who Took Medfield Teen Sentenced to 14 Years in Prison for Sex Trafficking

Stephen Ardrey, 30, was sentenced for transporting Brittany Thompson and intending to engage in sexual activity.

Stephen Ardrey, 30, of Springfield, Missouri, was sentenced to 14 years in federal prison on Thursday for transporting 17-year-old Brittany Thompson from Medfield into Rhode Island with the intent to engage in criminal sexual activity, according to a statement from the U.S. Department of Justice.

Ardrey admitted to meeting Thompson in an online chat room in December 2012. Over time, they talked more frequently and their conversations became sexually explicit. Ardrey discussed selling her in order to make money so they could “go away” together, according to the Justice Department.

Patch reported at the time of her disappearance that Thompson has developmental issues that can affect her decision-making.

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In September 2013 Ardrey met the victim at a public library in Medfield. Ardrey and the victim traveled by train from Boston to Providence and then by taxi to a West Greenwich, R.I., motel. The next day Ardrey posted an advertisement on backpage.com and other websites that displayed provocative photographs of the victim. Details of what followed is described in full on the Department of Justice’s statement.

Ardrey was arrested on September 12, 2013 when someone recognized the Thompson from a missing persons report when the pair were walking along a highway in Rhode Island. Ardrey subsequently pleaded guilty to child trafficking.

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“The defendant sexually exploited a vulnerable minor for profit and for his own gratification,” said Acting Special Agent in Charge Bart J. Cahill of HSI Boston, according the statement.

“The reprehensible and degrading nature of these crimes should leave no doubt that he has earned every minute in prison he has received. This sentence should also send a message to those who traffic in human beings – that ICE and its federal and local law enforcement partners are committed to protecting those who cannot protect themselves.”





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