Two men allegedly associated with the notorious criminal organization MS-13 are facing charges after police say they trafficked and sexually exploited a victim. <\/p>\n
Two men allegedly associated with the notorious criminal organization MS-13 are facing charges after police say they trafficked and sexually exploited a victim throughout the Greater Toronto Area.<\/p>\n
In November 2025, police launched Project Mermaid after one of the suspects\u2014who was serving a \u201clengthy sentence\u201d at a Kingston, Ont., prison at the time\u2014used an unauthorized cellphone to communicate with the victim and his co-accused.<\/p>\n
\u201cInvestigators allege the two men used intimidation, manipulation, and threats of violence to control the (female) victim while financially benefiting from her exploitation,\u201d police said in a news release issued Wednesday.<\/p>\n
Investigators believe there may be additional victims who have not yet come forward.<\/p>\n
Police executed four search warrants in the Mississauga and Collingwood areas in connection with the investigation.<\/p>\n
As a result, 42-year-old Mississauga resident Marcos Ariel Marinoni and 30-year-old Toronto resident Carlos Gutierrez were both charged with trafficking in persons, receiving benefit resulting from trafficking in persons and advertising sexual services, along with several other charges.<\/p>\n
A spokesperson for Peel police told CTV News Toronto that Gutierrez is serving a 14-year sentence for attempted murder.<\/p>\n
Gutierrez was one of three suspects charged after a 65-year-old dog walker was shot at 13 times in February 2023<\/a> in a case of mistaken identity. Police said at the time that the suspects were hired by an organized crime group to kill a man in Schomberg, Ont.<\/p>\n Both suspects remain in custody.<\/p>\n