Suspected child sex trafficker arrested in San Jose, missing girl found alive in trunk
Child sex trafficking suspect Jolaun Canton. Photo courtesy SJPD.
SAN JOSE, Calif. - A man suspected of child sex trafficking was arrested in April, the San Jose Police Department announced on Monday. The suspect involved allegedly trafficked a girl who was reported missing from East Palo Alto.
Police said the girl was reported missing on February 25 and was found one month later in the trunk of a vehicle at a San Jose residence by East Palo Alto police detectives and San Jose police officers.
Officials said the girl was held against her will and was forced to engage in "commercial sex acts" in exchange for money by the adult male suspect. That suspect was identified by the two police departments as 22-year-old Jolaun Canton of San Jose.
Authorities caught up with the suspect on April 20 when SJPD officers stopped Canton's vehicle for an unrelated traffic stop. Police said the suspect fled on foot but was caught during a foot pursuit. An arrest was made. Police said Canton also had a ‘ghost gun’ in his possession.
Canton was booked in Santa Clara County Jail for being a felon in possession of a firearm and for evading officers. Santa Clara County District Attorney's Office became involved and charges were amended to include child sex trafficking.
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