Michael Pratt, the notorious founder of GirlsDoPorn, has pleaded guilty to sex trafficking charges after evading authorities for three years. Once listed among the FBI’s Ten Most Wanted Fugitives, Pratt, 42, was apprehended in Spain in December 2022 and extradited to San Diego in March 2024. He faces a potential life sentence for his role in a scheme that exploited hundreds of women, many of whom were teenagers, under the guise of modeling opportunities.

According to the U.S. Department of Justice, Pratt and his associates lured women to participate in adult films by falsely promising lucrative modeling gigs. They assured the women that the videos would remain private and would not be shared online. However, once the women were on set, they were coerced into performing sex acts on camera. If any of the women expressed a desire to stop filming, Pratt and his co-conspirators threatened them with lawsuits, canceled their flights home, or threatened to release the videos publicly.

Pratt's operation, which began in 2012, generated over $17 million in profits by 2019. The videos were uploaded to popular adult sites, where they garnered millions of views. Victims of Pratt's scheme have reported devastating consequences, including job loss, eviction, and severe emotional distress. Some have even attempted suicide due to the trauma they experienced.

In court, Pratt admitted to orchestrating the recruitment of women and managing the filming process. He confessed to misleading an 18-year-old woman who responded to a Craigslist ad for a modeling opportunity, assuring her that her video would only be shared with private clients in Australia. After filming, the video was posted online without her consent, despite her pleas for it to be removed.

Pratt pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to sex traffic and one count of sex trafficking a victim in May 2012. He is scheduled for sentencing on September 25, 2024. His co-founder, Matthew Isaac Wolfe, was sentenced to 14 years in prison earlier this year, while male model Ruben Andre Garcia received a 20-year sentence in 2021. Cameraman Theodore Gyi was sentenced to four years in November 2022. Valorie Moser, the office manager, is set for sentencing in September 2025.

The case has highlighted the severe impact of sex trafficking on victims, with many detailing their struggles in court. One victim recounted her fear of revealing her age to Garcia, who was eager to recruit her despite her being underage. The operation's deceptive practices included using innocuous business names like "Bubblegum Casting" to mask their true intentions.

As the legal proceedings continue, Pratt's guilty plea marks a significant step in addressing the exploitation of vulnerable individuals in the adult film industry.