Charges dropped against defendants in sex trafficking case

Federal prosecutors in Tennessee Tuesday dropped charges against the remaining defendants in an alleged Minnesota-based sex trafficking conspiracy.

Last week, a federal appeals court upheld a lower court's acquittals of three Minnesotans convicted in 2012 of bringing girls from the Twin Cities to Tennessee and selling them for sex.

After the appeals court ruling, the U.S. attorney's office in Nashville said 16 other defendants were still awaiting trial.

The appellate judges said St. Paul Police investigator Sgt. Heather Weyker lied to a grand jury and "likely exaggerated or fabricated" testimony from a purported victim.

Nashville attorney David Komisar said Yassin Yusef, whose acquittal was upheld last week, had "a consensual relationship" with the victim listed in court documents as Jane Doe 2.

"Jane Doe 2 was of age. She was not a minor," Komisar said. "He did not sex traffic her. They had a consensual relationship with each other."

The department put Weyker on paid administrative leave last week. But a St. Paul police spokesman said Tuesday there will not be an internal affairs investigation because other law enforcement agencies handled the trafficking case.

Create a More Connected Minnesota

MPR News is your trusted resource for the news you need. With your support, MPR News brings accessible, courageous journalism and authentic conversation to everyone - free of paywalls and barriers. Your gift makes a difference.