RIVERSIDE – A Riverside County jury has convicted a Riverside man of human trafficking as well as the rape of two of his victims.

Taiwan Orran Reed, 36, was convicted on Aug. 10, 2020, of two counts of rape by force or fear, as well as one count each of pimping, procuring for prostitution, and human trafficking.

Reed faces a potential life sentence and is scheduled to return on Sept. 3, 2020, before Judge Bernard Schwartz at the Hall of Justice in Riverside for sentencing.

Authorities believe Reed has been trafficking victims for more than a decade beginning when he  previously lived in the Compton area and continuing when he moved to Riverside.

Reed was arrested by Riverside police in May 2018 and, during the investigation, Riverside police  detective Joshua Sturdavant located previous human trafficking victims of Reed in three different
states.

The case for which Reed was charged and convicted involved two Riverside County victims who Reed forced into prostitution with Reed taking them to various locations throughout Southern California known for prostitution activity.

Reed used other human trafficking victims to find new victims for him and his operation. The investigation revealed that once he met the victims, Reed would take their belongings – such as
cell phones and identification. He would also threaten the victim and her family should the victim
try to leave. The two victims in this case were also raped by Reed.

The case, RIF1802434, was prosecuted by Deputy District Attorney Gary Polk of the DA’s Human
Trafficking Team.

If you or someone you know may be a victim of human trafficking, you can contact the Riverside
County Anti-Human Trafficking task force 24-hour toll free hotline at (855) 758-3733 or the
National Human Trafficking Resource Center at (888) 373-7888.

Image Sources

  • human trafficking: Shutterstock