OAKLAND — A man known around the East Bay as a popular rapper was charged last week with human trafficking of a minor, in a case that started when a 16-year-old girl robbed a lingerie store at knifepoint, according to court records.
Timothy George Jr., 27, was charged with human trafficking, pimping, and pandering, all felonies, after his arrest on Nov. 19, court records show. George, a Martinez resident, is a rapper who uses the stage name Lil T1mmy and whose music has garnered 5.2 million views on YouTube. Authorities say they reviewed his private messages on Instagram during an investigation that started in Oakland, when the alleged victim robbed the same lingerie store twice in a week.
George has not yet entered a plea. During his arrest last week, he allegedly admitted to investigators that he met the girl on social media, and to “talking to her through text and taking her out to eat.” But police say he denied any involvement “in her sexual exploitation.”
The girl gave a statement to police in which she said she was already being trafficked by someone else when she met George, and claimed she lied to him about her age, according to court records. Police say she referred to him as her “boyfriend pimp.”
After police arrested the girl on Sept. 1, the second time she allegedly robbed a lingerie store on the 1900 block of Fruitvale Avenue in Oakland, authorities say they were able to identify George as her trafficker. Investigators seized Instagram messages between George and the alleged victim. They say they collected evidence George was having her charge $80 to $400 for “dates” with random strangers and that he would either bring her food or allow her to smoke marijuana in his vehicle when she needed a “break.”
George used a cellphone app to track the girl’s location when she was walking around local areas known for prostitution, according to police.