Backpage.com CEO, 2 Shareholders Charged in Trafficking Allegations
Carl Ferrer, chief executive of advertising website Backpage.com, was arrested on Thursday on criminal charges including pimping, as authorities investigate the company which has been accused of facilitating sex trafficking of minors, according to a Reuters report.
“Backpage, the second-largest U.S. online classified ad service after Craigslist, has faced scrutiny from the U.S. Senate as well as civil lawsuits over allegations that the site facilitates sex trafficking, especially of children,” reports Dan Levine for Reuters.
The California AG’s office also announced a criminal charge against the controlling shareholders of Backpage.com, Michael Lacey and James Larkin. Ford said warrants have been issued for Lacey and Larkin but they are not in custody. Ferrer was custody in Houston on a California warrant.
