Rankin Woman Pleads Guilty in Sex Trafficking Scheme

PITTSBURGH - A resident of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, pleaded guilty in federal court to a charge of conspiracy to commit sex trafficking, United States Attorney David J. Hickton announced today.

Kiari Nicole Day, 26, of Rankin, Pennsylvania, pleaded guilty to one count before United States District Judge Arthur J. Schwab.

In connection with the guilty plea, in February 2015, Day knowingly entered into an agreement to conspire to recruit for sex trafficking four female minors who had not attained the age of 18 years.

Judge Arthur J. Schwab scheduled sentencing for Dec. 1, 2015, at 9 a.m. The law provides for a sentence of up to life, a fine of $250,000.00, and a term of supervised release of no more than five years, or any or all. Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the actual sentence imposed would be based upon the seriousness of the offenses and the prior criminal history, if any, of the defendants.

Assistant United States Attorneys Jessica Lieber Smolar and Katherine A. King are prosecuting this case on behalf of the government.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Pennsylvania State Police conducted the investigation that led to the prosecution of Day.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc/.