25 YEARS FOR TRANSGENDER ATTACK

Sentencing Follows Last Week’s Sentencing of Convicted Sex Trafficker Ben Gaston to 50-Years-to-Life in Prison for Holding a Prostituted Woman Hostage

Last week, Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus R. Vance, Jr., announced the sentencing of DAMIQUE FENNELL, 23, to 25 years in state prison and 20 years post-release supervision for leading the group assault and robbery of a transgender woman in a Midtown Manhattan hotel room. On August 8, 2014, a jury in New York State Supreme Court convicted FENNELL of all charges in the indictment against him, including Burglary in the First Degree, Burglary in the First Degree as a Sexually Motivated Felony, Robbery in the First Degree, and Robbery in the First Degree as a Sexually Motivated Felony, among other charges. FENNELL’s co-defendants – JORGE CASTRO, 27, KALIF HAILE, 21, and ABDUL HARRISON, 22 – each previously pleaded guilty to Burglary in the First Degree and have been sentenced to significant state prison terms.

“All too often, we see defendants preying on individuals they believe to be weak,” said District Attorney Vance. “The survivor in this case showed true strength in the face of a brutal and relentless attack, and I thank her for her courage and willingness to come forward and testify at trial. Several decades ago, a case like this one may not have gone to trial, but today’s sentencing and the convictions of these defendants represent a significant step towards obtaining justice for all crime victims, regardless of background. I thank all those involved for ensuring that the perpetrators of a violent and harrowing assault are held accountable for their crimes.”

As proven at trial, on February 28, 2013, FENNELL and the victim, a 27-year-old woman of transgender experience who advertised escort services online, agreed to meet at a Holiday Inn. When FENNEL arrived at the hotel room, the victim became uncomfortable and asked the defendant to leave. Instead, FENNELL pretended to exit the room and left the door ajar, allowing himself and three other unanticipated men – CASTRO, HAILE, and HARRISON – to force their way to into the victim’s hotel room shortly thereafter. FENNELL struck the victim in the face and knocked her to the floor, where she was repeatedly kicked and beaten by the defendants and restrained with duct tape. As the victim lay on the ground, FENNELL strangled and sexually abused the woman, and then threatened her while holding a gun to her head. The defendants also took the victim’s laptop, cell phones, and nearly $1,000 in cash before leaving her bound in the hotel room.

In an unrelated case last week, convicted sex trafficker Benjamin Gaston was sentenced to 50-years-to-life in state prison for kidnapping and raping a woman whom he held captive for nearly two days in November 2012, trafficking her and forcing her to earn money for him through prostitution. In June, Gaston was convicted by a jury in New York State Supreme Court on all counts in the indictment against him: Sex Trafficking, as well as Kidnapping, Criminal Sexual Act, Rape, Assault, and Sex Abuse, all in the First Degree. Co-defendant Johnny Jackson previously pleaded guilty to Sex Trafficking for forcing the same woman to engage in prostitution and was sentenced to 9-to-18 years in state prison.

Assistant District Attorneys Mary Weisgerber and Jennifer Gaffney handled the prosecution of the FENNELL, CASTRO, HAILE, and HARRISON cases under the supervision of Assistant District Attorney Martha Bashford, Chief of the Sex Crimes Unit.

Defendant Information:

DAMIQUE FENNELL, D.O.B. 8/20/1991

Convicted:

• Burglary in the First Degree, a class B felony, 2 counts
• Burglary in the First Degree as a Sexually Motivated Felony, a class B felony, 2 counts
• Robbery in the First Degree, a class B felony, 1 count
• Robbery in the First Degree as a Sexually Motivated Felony, a class B felony, 1 count
• Robbery in the Second Degree, a class C felony, 1 count
• Robbery in the Second Degree as a Sexually Motivated Felony, a class C felony, 1 count

Sentenced:

• 25 years in state prison
• 20 years post-release supervision

JORGE CASTRO, D.O.B. 9/6/1987
Hudson County, NJ

Convicted:

• Burglary in the First Degree, a class B felony, 1 count

Sentenced:

• 13 years in state prison

KALIF HAILE, D.O.B. 4/2/1993

Convicted:

• Burglary in the First Degree, a class B felony, 1 count

Sentenced:

• 10 years in state prison

ABDUL HARRISON, D.O.B. 7/12/1992
New York, NY

Convicted:

• Burglary in the First Degree, a class B felony, 1 count

Sentenced:

• 10 years in state prison