Cops: Pimp held child to prostitute mom

ALBUQUERQUE (KRQE) - A California woman is telling police she was forced into prostitution in Albuquerque because her child was being held hostage in California.

Albuquerque Police Department vice detectives say Rufus Byers, 44, coerced the woman by holding her child captive.

Vice officers identified a woman as an apparent prostitute on the "Backpage" website and met her at the La Quinta Inn at Interstate 25 and San Antonio NE.

The woman, identified as "Sarah" in the complaint, said Byers coerced her into prostitution and had her 3-year-old daughter in California.

"This is the first time I've heard of a human trafficking where someone was forced into criminal acts, where they are basically holding their child captive as a ransom," Officer Robert Gibbs said. "'You do what we want you to do, and your child will be safe.'"

Police say the woman left Stockton, Calif., with Byers on Nov. 18 leaving her child behind with a female friend of Byers whom she didn't know.

She told police Byers brought her to Albuquerque and promised to take care of her bills but kept all the money.

"Sarah" has now been moved to a safe house outside of Bernalillo County, and APD and the state Children, Youth and Families Department are working with California authorities to reunite her with her child.

Byers is charged with human trafficking and being held on a $15,000 bond at the Metropolitan Detention Center.

Trafficking involves taking people across state lines and forcing them to engage in criminal acts, and police say this case could evolve into a federal offense.