Oakland Co. Man Used Violence, Drugs To Control Sex Trafficking Victims: Prosecutor

WATERFORD TOWNSHIP, MI — A man is facing charges after trafficking multiple women out of Oakland County hotels and motels, according to the Oakland County Prosecutor's Office.

Quincy Lamar Bland, 43, of Waterford Township, was charged with

• Two counts of Engaging in a Human Trafficking Enterprise resulting in Injury/Commercial Sexual Activity
• Two counts of transporting a person for the purposes of Prostitution
• Two counts of accepting earnings from Prostitution
• One count of Delivery or Manufacture of less than 50 grand of a controlled substance
• Two misdemeanor counts of Assault or Assault and Battery

He was placed in the Oakland County Jail with a bond set at $100,000. His next court date is scheduled for Dec. 10.

If convicted on all counts, he faces up to life in prison.

Officials began investigating Bland on Nov. 25 when a woman told officers that she and another woman were being trafficked out of multiple hotels across Oakland County, according to the prosecutor's office.

Investigators believe Bland controlled the women through violence, threats of violence and drugs, including crack, to keep the women awake and working for several days at a time, according to the prosecutor's office.

Officers arrested Bland in connection with the human trafficking after executing a search warrant at his home on Nov. 26, according to the prosecutor's office.

During the search, officers found Bland with a bag of meth, crack cocaine and heroin, according to the prosecutor's office.

Officers also seized cash, multiple cell phones and other drug paraphernalia from the home, according to the prosecutor's office.

Bland's arrested comes within a week after Oakland County officials busted a separate human trafficking case out of Southfield. In that case, Prenentice Mack Orr was charged with three felonies after a victim told police she was trafficked out of Southfield.

As of Tuesday, there were multiple other human trafficking related cases currently under investigation as well, according to the prosecutor's office.

"Human traffickers operate in the shadows, exploiting vulnerable victims, and controlling them through multiple means, including making and keeping them dependent on drugs, and on violence and threats of violence. The cases we are seeing now are only the tip of the iceberg – human trafficking is a massive problem that requires a massive response," Oakland County Prosecutor Karen McDonald said. "I commend the agencies that took advantage of the recent training, and especially the work of the law enforcement agencies in these recent cases, along with my office’s Trafficking Unit. There is so much work to be done, and my office will continue to work with police to prevent and fight human trafficking throughout Michigan."