JTFMax:
He shamelessly exploited young women for his gain.
The FBI has put former porn site owner Michael James Pratt, 40, on its top 10 most wanted criminals list. The New Zealander is accused of sex trafficking, fraud, and coercion.
The FBI is looking for Michael James Pratt with this photo
Pratt is said to have used a perfidious scam to get around 100 women to shoot pornographic films between 2012 and 2019. Accordingly, he lured the 18 to 23-year-olds with Internet ads for harmless model jobs. Only after the women had applied did he tell them precisely what it was about.
To avoid receiving direct refusals, he assured them that the films were only for private collectors, would not end up on the Internet, and their identity would remain secret. He paid accomplices to corroborate the story.
In reality, it was very different: The sex films ended up on the two porn portals, "GirlsDoPorn" and "GirlsDoToys," which are no longer available. He is also said to have posted some of the actresses' names and contact details on the website pornwikileaks.com.
Pratt promised the women $3,000 to $5,000 for a day of shooting. If that wasn't enough to convince her, he reportedly sometimes locked his victims in until they changed their minds and had sex on camera.
Other women reported that Pratt and his associates threatened and intimidated them after they saw their videos posted online. They only went offline when the site closed in 2019.
At this point, Pratt had already made $17 million with his insidious plan. Many of his partners have already been arrested, and one of the recruiters has been sentenced to 20 years in prison.
While his former colleagues have confessed to human trafficking, fraud, and coercion, Pratt remains on the run. The FBI has offered a $100,000 reward for information leading to his arrest.
