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Written by: A. Smith
Published October 16, 2025 @ 9:33 AM ET
DEKALB COUNTY, Ga. – A Forest Park woman has been sentenced to 40 years in prison after pleading guilty to human trafficking and pimping charges involving a 16-year-old relative and an 18-year-old woman, according to Georgia Attorney General Chris Carr.
Virginia Anne Bates, 37, admitted to arranging commercial sex with both victims and collecting a share of the profits, prosecutors said. She pleaded guilty in September to four counts of trafficking of persons for sexual servitude and three counts of pimping.
Under her sentence, Bates will serve 25 years in prison and the remaining 15 years on strict probation. She is also required to register as a sex offender.
“For anyone to harm a child is unconscionable, but when that abuse and exploitation occurs at the hands of a family member, it’s all the more sickening,” Carr said in a statement. “This case is a tragic reminder that human trafficking comes in all forms, and it takes all of us working together to identify the signs and save lives.”
The Attorney General’s Human Trafficking Prosecution Unit began investigating the case after a November 2021 incident in which the 16-year-old victim, who was living with Bates at the time, was contacted by law enforcement during a mental health crisis. Officers suspected she might be a trafficking victim and placed her in treatment, but she later ran away and was reported missing.
Investigators said Bates stayed in contact with the teen while she was missing and later rented a hotel room where the girl and an 18-year-old woman were expected to perform commercial sex acts. Bates helped take photos of both victims, posted online advertisements, and collected money from buyers, according to prosecutors.
The unit’s chief investigator, Bryan Kimbell, located and recovered the 16-year-old in March 2023. Bates was arrested nearly a year later, on March 25, 2024, with help from the U.S. Marshals Service, the Fulton County Sheriff’s Office SWAT Team, and police in Forest Park and Clayton County.
Assistant Attorney General Maggie Meetze prosecuted the case.
Carr said the conviction underscores the state’s ongoing efforts to combat human trafficking and protect vulnerable victims across Georgia.