AURORA | A 23-year-old man accused of being a long-time metro area gang member was sentenced to 20 years in prison after pleading guilty to selling a 17-year-old girl for sex in Aurora last year.
Kennedy Allen, 23, was sentenced Wednesday in Adams County District Court following a guilty plea to Pimping of a Child, 17th Judicial District spokesperson Christopher Hopper said in a statement.
The conviction stemmed from last September, when Aurora police special units conducting an undercover operation in northwest Aurora saw what they were certain was a human trafficking operation being carried out.
The APD Direct Action Response Team officers saw a “young female” near East Colfax Avenue and Clinton Street, “standing on the corner in sexually revealing clothing,” police reported. “The girl engaged with passing drivers in ways consistent with attempted prostitution.
As undercover officers were watching, a man in a black car drove alongside the girl, and she got in, police said. DART officers intervened and determined it was a trafficking crime playing out.
After an extensive investigation, police determined that the man in the car was Allen, whom police described as a “documented criminal street gang member.”
The investigation revealed that Allen had for some time been “recruiting, directing, transporting, and profiting from the minor’s commercial sexual exploitation.”
Police later determined that Allen was on probation for previous drug distribution convictions.
“Investigators gathered digital evidence from Allen’s phone and social media accounts, documenting communications in which he arranged locations, times, and prices for commercial sex acts,” police said in reports. “Witness statements and surveillance footage confirmed Allen threatened the victim if she refused and that he financially benefited from her exploitation.”
During police interviews, police said the girl said she had long been “coerced and manipulated” by Allen, who controlled her money, phone and ability to go anywhere, “limiting her ability to leave the situation. Officers observed signs of trauma consistent with sexual exploitation and trafficking.”
Investigators said Allen coordinated sex for pay between the girl and “multiple clients.” He would drive the girl to locations for sex, “and instructed her on how to interact with customers,” police said.
“The prosecution believes the defendant was selling children for commercial sex to generate profits for his gang,” Hopper said.
Allen pleaded guilty Oct. 23, 2025 to pimping a child. Adams County District Court Judge Jeffrey Ruff on March 11 sentenced Allen to 20 years in state prison.
“This prosecution and subsequent prison sentence send a clear and unmistakable message: if you engage in the human trafficking of children, we will go after you, and we will hold you accountable,” District Attorney Brian Mason said in a statement. “The defendant in this case preyed upon a young, vulnerable girl and sold her into sexual slavery. This was a despicable act, and he will now go to prison for it. We will continue fighting for victims, holding predators accountable, and pushing for laws at the Colorado Legislature that strengthen our ability to combat human trafficking.”
Aurora police said the case was remarkable in how it illustrates the depth and damage of human trafficking, especially when it involves juveniles.
Aurora police were recently lauded for the department’s work in identifying and investigating human trafficking.
“Cases like this represent some of the most predatory crimes our detectives investigate, targeting vulnerable youth for exploitation and profit,” Aurora Police Commander Marc Paolino said in a statement. “Detective Adam Hughes, along with members of our Gang Intervention Unit and Direct-Action Response Team, conducted a thorough and victim-centered investigation, following digital evidence, online activity, and street-level leads to hold the offender accountable. Our department remains committed to protecting victims, pursuing justice, and continuing proactive efforts to identify and recover human trafficking victims in our community.”
Police and prosecutors reached out to officials from an organization that supports human trafficking victims.
“Throughout this process, the survivor was understandably fearful to engage — a reality that too often leads to trafficking cases being dismissed,” Jenelle Goodrich, Executive Director of From Silenced to Saved, said in a statement. But the organization, “the Aurora Police Department, and the 17th Judicial District Attorney’s Office remained committed to pursuing justice without placing pressure on her.”
Goodrich lauded the multi-agency approach to bring justice and aid to the victim.
“This is what justice should look like: coordinated, compassionate, and focused on accountability to the one that caused harm,” she said. “We applaud this jurisdiction’s determination to combat child trafficking and protect vulnerable youth.”