QUEENS — A Queens jury has indicted a Kew Gardens man who forced a 14-year-old girl to have sex with his drug dealer to settle a marijuana debt by threatening to release a nude video she took of herself, Queens District Attorney Richard Brown said.
Jacob Marcial, 18, of 129th Street in Kew Gardens, was charged with sex trafficking, promoting prostitution, rape, criminal sexual act, coercion and endangering the welfare of a child, after he blackmailed the victim into having sex with his drug dealer, according to the Queens DA’s office.
The dealer, Albert Premnauth, 23, of Jamaica Avenue in Richmond Hill, was also charged with rape, criminal sexual act, coercion and endangering the welfare of a child, prosecutors said.
In early 2016, the victim sent a naked video of herself to her 14-year-old girlfriend as a joke on Snapchat, Brown said.
The friend later shared it with Marcial, according to the Queens DA’s office, and he told the victim that if she did not have sex with his drug dealer to pay off a debt, he would post the video online, authorities said.
Marcial later arranged for the victim and Premnauth to meet at his apartment, prosecutors said.
According to Brown, the girl told Premnauth that she was only 14-years old and begged him to give her time to pay the money instead of having sex with him, but he refused.
“This case tragically demonstrates the danger of children sending explicit images or videos of themselves to their friends or posting them on social media — even as a joke,” said Brown in a statement.
“Once a young person sends or posts an image or video, they lose control of that image and who has it or how it is used," he added.
Both men were arraigned Friday and bail was set at $15,000 bond for each of them, the DA's office said.
Marcial faces up to 25 years in prison and Premnauth faces up to seven years in prison.
Their attorneys did not immediately return phone calls seeking comment.
Marcial is due back in court on March 22, and Premnauth’s next court appearance is scheduled for May 8.
