Trucker accused of keeping women as sex slaves gets 20 years

SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — A Utah trucker who pleaded guilty to keeping women as sex slaves in his semi-trailer as he drove across the country was sentenced Wednesday to 20 years in prison.

Vafeades, wearing glasses and a gray striped jail jumpsuit, gave a short, emotional apology at a sentencing hearing.

Vafeades also suffered serious abuse as a child and repeated that pattern with his victims, his lawyer Vanessa Ramos said, though she disputed unspecified details of the victims' accounts.

Vafeades was arrested after officers at a Minnesota weigh station noticed bruises on the 19-year-old woman's face and discovered an old restraining order barring Vafeades from contacting her, according to charging documents.

Higgins acknowledged the sentence could be considered short for the seriousness of the charges, but the plea deal brought closure to the victims and spared them from having to testify, she said.