A segment of a story caught my attention today from the New York Post (and Fox News) …

On top of it all, Wolfe admitted that GirlsDoPorn co-owner Michael James Pratt, 39, whom authorities are still searching for, operated a website called pornwikileaks.com with identifying information and social media accounts for some women being filmed.

The website was dedicated to “exposing” the true identities of the women appearing in those sex videos, “causing the victims to be subjected to severe harassment,” the DOJ said in a press release.

The feds claim that Girls Do Porn was the one who ran that website, terrorizing adult performers for years. Yet ….

But we won’t get into that conspiracy theory at this time. For now, let’s talk about what the feds have told us about the recent updates to the Girls Do Porn case.

Yesterday one of the owners of Girls Do Porn, Matthew Wolfe, pled guilty. Michael Pratt is still on the run, hiding somewhere in New Zealand.

Summary of all the charges

Count 1 (charging all defendants)

Conspiracy to Commit Sex Trafficking by Force, Fraud and Coercion, 18 U.S.C. § 1594(c)

Maximum Penalty:  Life in prison, $250,000 fine, and a special assessment of $5,000 under 18 U.S.C. § 3014.

Count 2 (Pratt)

Production of Child Pornography, 18 U.S.C. § 2251(a) and (e)

Minimum penalty: Fifteen years in prison; Maximum penalty: 30 years in custody, $250,000 fine, and a special assessment of $5,000 under 18 U.S.C. § 3014.

Count 3 (Pratt)

Sex Trafficking of a Minor by Force, Fraud and Coercion, 18 U.S.C. § 1591(a)(1) and (2)

Minimum penalty: Fifteen years in prison; Maximum penalty: life in custody, $250,000 fine, and a special assessment of $5,000 under 18 U.S.C. § 3014

Counts 4 (Pratt, Wolfe, Garcia), 5 (Pratt, Garcia), 6 (Pratt, Wolfe, Garcia), 7 (Pratt, Garcia, Gyi), 8 (Pratt, Garcia, Gyi)

Sex Trafficking by Force, Fraud and Coercion, 18 U.S.C. § 1591(a) and (b)(1)

Minimum penalty: Fifteen years in prison; Maximum penalty: life in custody, $250,000 fine, and a special assessment of $5,000 under 18 U.S.C. § 3014

Adult website operator Matthew Isaac Wolfe pleaded guilty in federal court today to conspiring to fraudulently coerce young women to appear in sex videos on the GirlsDoPorn and GirlsDoToys websites.

Wolfe pleaded guilty before U.S. Magistrate Judge Barbara L. Major to Conspiracy to Commit Sex Trafficking by Force, Fraud and Coercion, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 1594. Wolfe, the fourth defendant to plead guilty in connection with the case, admitted that he moved to the United States in 2011 to work for his friend and co-defendant Michael Pratt, the owner of the GirlsDoPorn website. Wolfe had a wide range of responsibilities. Wolfe filmed approximately one hundred videos, he uploaded finished videos onto the internet, he oversaw the company’s financial books, and he operated various business entities that were used to promote the business. Wolfe worked at GirlsDoPorn from 2011 until his arrest in October 2019.

To persuade women to appear in the videos, Wolfe admitted to telling women that the videos would never be posted on-line, that the videos would never be released in the United States, and that no one who knew the women would ever find out about the videos, representations that he knew false, because the videos were exclusively marketed and distributed on the internet. Wolfe trained co-defendant Theodore Gyi, a cameraman, on how to run video shoots and told Gyi that, if asked, to tell the women that the videos would not be posted on the internet.

Wolfe also admitted that he was aware that personal identifying information and social media accounts for some women were being posted on pornwikileaks.com, a site controlled by Pratt and dedicated to “exposing” the true identities of individuals appearing in sex videos, causing the victims to be subjected to severe harassment. Even after Wolfe became aware of this, he and others continued to assure prospective models that no one would ever find out about their video shoot or learn their identity.

“This crime had a devastating impact on the victims,” said U.S. Attorney Randy Grossman. “We will seek justice for human trafficking victims in hopes that it will help them reclaim their lives and leave the pain of this experience in the past.” Grossman commended the prosecution team as well as FBI agents and members of the San Diego Human Trafficking Task Force for their continuing effort to investigate and prosecute this important case.

“Wolfe lied to and preyed on vulnerable young women, subjecting them to years of relentless harassment, fear, and mental anguish,” said Stacey Moy, special agent in charge of the FBI San Diego Field Office. “Identifying, investigating, and apprehending sex trafficking offenders is a critical part of our mission. We will continue to work with our partners every day to hold these perpetrators accountable for their crimes.”

Wolfe is scheduled to be sentenced by U.S. District Judge Janis L. Sammartino on October 10, 2022, at 9 a.m.