Bridgeton Man Indicted for Human Sex Trafficking

A Bridgeton man was indicted by an Atlantic County Grand Jury yesterday for the human trafficking for sex of a child and two adults.

According to Acting Atlantic County Prosecutor Diane Ruberton, Markus E. Tukes, 47, of Bridgeton was indicted for:

• Human Trafficking, the State alleging that Tukes “did knowingly hold, recruit, lure, entice, harbor, transport, provide or obtain…a child under the age of 18…to engage in sexual activity as defined in” the prostitution statute—a crime of the 1st degree,
• Endangering the Welfare of a Child, that Tukes “did knowingly engage in sexual conduct with…a child under the age of 18”—a 3rd degree crime,
• 2 Counts of Human Trafficking, the State alleging that Tukes “did knowingly hold, recruit, lure, entice, harbor, transport, or obtain” two adults to engage in prostitution, one of the victims being held by “causing or threatening to cause serious bodily harm or physical restraint,” and the other victim held by “facilitating access to a controlled dangerous substance”—crimes of the 1st degree, and
• Possession of a Controlled Dangerous Substance (cocaine)—a 3rd degree crime.
An investigation by the FBI’s Child Exploitation Task Force resulted in the arrests of Tukes and Courtney H. Glose, female, 31, of MacDonald Place, Brigantine, NJ, on December 2, 2016. Both suspects were originally charged with Promoting the Prostitution of a Child under the age of 18—a 1st degree crime and with Endangering the Welfare of a Child, and Conspiracy—both 3rd degree crimes. The arrest was made without incident at the Knight’s Inn of Absecon, NJ.
The focus of the investigation was the exploitation of a female child under the age of eighteen for the purpose of promoting prostitution.

The Child Exploitation Task Force located and ensured the protection of the female juvenile victim two weeks before the arrests of Tukes and Glose.
This Child Exploitation Task Force—staffed by members of federal, state, and county law enforcement agencies (the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the New Jersey Department of Human Services Police, the Atlantic County Prosecutor’s Office, and the Atlantic County Sheriff’s Office), conducted this investigation with two primary goals:
1. To identify and prosecute those involved in the sex trafficking of minors, and 2. To recover the minor victims to ensure their safety and provide them access to the services they need.
After detectives processed the two for the arrests, Tukes and Glose were both lodged in the Atlantic County Justice Facility on $250.000 full cash / no 10%.bail set by Municipal Court Judge John H. Rosenberger, of Absecon Municipal Court. Glose was subsequently released from jail on her own recognizance; Tukes remains in the Atlantic County Justice Facility. On February 22, 2017, Courtney Glose waived indictment by Grand Jury, to be tried on the accusation of Endangering the Welfare of a Child—a 3rd degree crime.
A conviction for Human Trafficking of a Minor carries a potential penalty of 20 years to life imprisonment in New Jersey State prison, with the provision that a person convicted of this crime must serve a minimum of 20 years without parole eligibility; a conviction for the Human Trafficking of adults carries a potential penalty of 10-20 years in prison; a 3rd degree conviction carries a potential penalty of 3-5 years in prison.

Ruberton urges anyone with knowledge of the exploitation of a child for purposed of prostitution to contact the FBI at 1-800-CALL FBI, or the Atlantic County Prosecutor's Office at 609) 909-7800.