A Bronx male sex offender, who was sentenced to 10 years in prison in May 2022, had been released on bail in January 2021 despite having been hit, as a co-defendant, just four months earlier with 22 charges, including sex trafficking of a child and promoting prostitution and separately, for rape, a criminal sex act, unlawful imprisonment, and attempted strangulation. Upon release on bail, he attempted to traffic a previous victim and was rearrested the following month.

 

Bronx District Attorney Darcel D. Clark announced on May 16 [2022] that the defendant, Reginald Cooke, AKA Reggie, 33, last of Anderson Avenue in the Highbridge section of The Bronx, was sentenced to 10 years in prison for the sex-trafficking of a 28-year-old New Jersey woman and 15-year-old Brooklyn girl.

 

In the context of the sentencing, Clark said, “The defendant pleaded guilty in two separate cases in which he assaulted a woman and a teenage girl and forced them into selling themselves for sex. No one deserves to be treated in such a despicable way. Today’s sentence shows people will not get away with sex trafficking crimes, and that we are here to help the traumatized victims as best we can to seek justice and provide resources so they can move on.”

 

According to the investigation and the case put forward by the prosecution, between August 21, 2020 and October 8, 2020, the defendant told a 28-year-old victim that she could have a better life, convincing her to stay in his Bronx home along with her two children.

 

Cooke subsequently took photos of the victim and posted them as ads on sex websites. As part of the sex trafficking of the victim, approximately 10-15 johns per day engaged in sex acts with the victim in Cooke’s apartment or at an apartment nearby. When the victim did not abide by Cooke’s rules, according to the investigation, he would slap, punch, attempt to strangle her, and pull her hair. He also plied her with PCP, one of several hallucinogenic drugs.

 

According to the website, My Health Alberta, hallucinogens can work as a stimulant, an anesthetic, or a painkiller, depending on how much is taken. The name PCP is a short form of the drug’s chemical name. Some street names for PCP include Angel Dust, Supergrass, and Rocket Fuel. Experts in the field of sex trafficking say it is not uncommon for victims to become addicted to some type of chemical in efforts to disassociate from the reality of what they are enduring on an ongoing basis.

 

On October 8, 2020, according to the investigation, the victim told the defendant that she did not want to be a part of the arrangement anymore at which point Cooke yelled at her and hit her in front of her two children. The victim called the police and left for New Jersey. An investigation began by the Bronx District Attorney’s human trafficking unit and the NYPD human trafficking unit.

 

Also in August 2020, the 15-year-old Brooklyn victim had been “sold” to Cooke for $300 and he had taken her to his home and refused to let her leave. During that time, Cooke engaged in sexual intercourse with her. A male/female less than 17 years of age is incapable of consenting to any sexual act as per NYS Penal Law Article 130 (sex offenses).

 

According to the investigation, Cooke also beat the teen to instill fear in her: punching, slapping, and attempting to strangle her. He also coordinated meetings with johns and managed prices and payments. As with the adult victim, Cooke took pictures of the Brooklyn teen and uploaded them as ads on sex websites.

 

The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children saw the victim’s photos online and notified the NYPD. On August 21, 2020, the girl was rescued by the human trafficking major case team after an undercover detective set up an appointment with the victim.

 

The Bronx District Attorney’s office said Cooke was charged, as reported at the time by Norwood News, in October 2020, along with other co-defendants, on a 22-count indictment charging sex trafficking of a child, second-degree promoting prostitution, two counts of third-degree promoting prostitution, and fourth degree promoting prostitution before Bronx Supreme Court Justice Michael Gross.

 

Officials said he was additionally charged with three counts of sex trafficking, second-degree promoting prostitution, third-degree rape, a third-degree criminal sexual act, second-degree unlawful imprisonment and third-degree assault. Bail was set at $350,00 cash/$350,00 bond/ $350,000 partially secured bond. After a surety hearing, a judge determined bail was from legal sources, and the defendant posted bail.

 

On January 21, 2021, according to the District Attorney’s office, Cooke was released from Rikers Island, and immediately contacted the now New Jersey-based complainant and attempted to traffic her again. He was arrested and charged again on February 5, 2021, in relation to the new case involving that victim.

 

Clark said Cooke was sentenced to 10 years in prison and five years of post-release supervision by Bronx Supreme Court Justice Laurence Busching. Final orders of protection for the victims were issued and Cooke was required to register as a sex offender. He pleaded guilty to one count of attempted sex trafficking on each of the two charges, one involving the 28-year-old woman and another involving the 15-year-old girl.

 

Norwood News asked the Office of Court Administration why Cooke was released from Rikers Island in January 2021 given the seriousness and the number of charges brought against him. We were informed, “It appears pursuant to a court order on a warrant. You would have to ask either DOC or DOCCS.”

 

We contacted NYC Department of Correction (DOC), explaining we had been referred to the department by the Office of Court Administration regarding our question. A spokesperson initially confirmed Cooke was in custody. We confirmed we were aware of this and that we were querying why Cooke, who had been arrested in October 2020 on multiple, serious sex offense charges, was released on bail from Rikers Island four months later in January 2021. The DOC representative responded, saying, “I am not sure you understand what occurred here, and would like to make sure you get your facts straight.”

 

Norwood News clarified our inquiry a third time, asking why someone who had been arrested on multiple, serious sex offense charges in October 2020 was released on bail from Rikers Island in January 2021. We were eventually informed that DOC acted on the instructions of the judge in releasing Cooke on bail.

 

We, therefore, contacted the Office of Court Administration once more and asked why the judge granted bail to Cooke on Jan. 21, 2021. We were asked for the name of the judge. At that point, only the name of the judge who presided over the accused’s arraignment in October 2020 was available to us i.e. Bronx Supreme Court Justice Michael Gross.

 

We were initially unsuccessful in our attempts to obtain the name of the judge who presided over the bail hearing in January 2021 via the e-courts system but the Bronx Criminal Court admin team later confirmed that the judge’s name was Judge Efrain Alvarado. We reached out to the Office of Court Administration, once more, a couple of times to ask why the judge granted bail in January 2021 to someone who, four months earlier, had been arrested and hit as a co-defendant with 22 charges, including sex trafficking of a child, promoting prostitution, and separately for rape, a criminal sex act, unlawful imprisonment, and assault [attempted strangulation], even if, at that point, he had not yet been convicted. We did not receive an immediate response.

 

While Cooke pleaded guilty to two counts of sex trafficking [one for each of the victims] and has been sentenced to 10 years, we’ve asked the Bronx District Attorney’s office for confirmation of how many of the 22+ charges finally stuck and we will update this story upon receipt of this information.

 

According to the Training Institute for Strangulation Prevention, based in California, perpetrators who use strangulation to silence their victims not only commit a felonious assault, but can be charged with attempted homicide. “For many years, medical training for the identification of domestic violence injuries, including strangulation, for police, prosecutors, and advocates was often overlooked and not included in core training,” the website reads.

 

It continues, “It wasn’t until the deaths of 17-year-old Casondra Stewart and 16-year-old Tamara Smith in 1995 that the San Diego criminal justice system first began to understand the lethality and seriousness of  ‘choking’ cases. The deaths of these two teenagers were a sobering reminder of the reality of relationship violence, prompting then-San Diego City Attorney, Casey Gwinn, to study existing ‘choking’ cases being prosecuted within his office.”

 

According to the institute, “The study revealed that, on a regular basis, victims had reported being choked, and in many of those cases, there was very little visible injury or evidence to corroborate the “choking” incident. The lack of physical evidence caused the criminal justice system to treat many ‘choking’ cases as minor incidents, much like a slap on the face where only redness may appear.”

 

Representatives of the institute added, “These two deaths ultimately changed the course of history and launched an aggressive awareness and education campaign to recruit experts and improve the criminal justice system’s response to the handling of ‘choking’ cases, which are now referred to as near-fatal strangulation cases [in the State of California].”

 

Norwood News has previously reported on the work of Freedom Youth NYC in combatting sex trafficking among vulnerable Bronx youth. We later reported on a sex trafficking ring, which had been run out of various Bronx motels.

 

As also reported, Freedom Youth NYC, located at Freedom Youth Family Justice Center in The Bronx, works with youth and adults in The Bronx and elsewhere, providing impartial support to anyone affected by sex trafficking or intimate partner violence. Their website is: https://freedomyouthnyc.com/.

 

The Bronx District Attorney’s Human Trafficking Unit can be reached at (718) 838 7185.

 

If you are being trafficked ​or suspect trafficking activity ​in your area, call the ​National Human Trafficking ​Resource Center Hotline ​at ​1-888-373-7888 ​or Text “Be Free” to 233733.​

 

If you are in immediate danger, if you can, call 911.