A defendant pleaded guilty on July 19 to a federal sex trafficking charge, admitting that he lured two victims – both of whom were 19 at the time – from Canada with promises of promoting their modeling careers, but instead used fraud and coercion to force the victims into engaging in commercial sex acts.

Jerome Terry Jr., 45, pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to engage in sex trafficking. As part of the plea, Terry and federal prosecutors have agreed to a prison sentence of between seven and 15 years, to be later determined by a judge.

Terry admitted in court that he and two co-conspirators set up a purported modeling management company called CanadianGirlzRock to lure aspiring models to Los Angeles. After seeing photographs of the two victims on social media, Terry contacted them and coerced them to travel to Los Angeles in 2014, federal authorities said. The defendant used fraud and coercion to force the victims to engage in commercial sex acts.

Terry has been in federal custody since 2019. United States District Judge Otis D. Wright II scheduled a sentencing hearing on Oct. 25.

Two unnamed co-conspirators originally charged with Terry in the case have cooperated with authorities. The case was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations, with assistance from the Los Angeles Police Department.