A former resident at Miami Beach's Mount Sinai Medical Center has been arrested for an attempted sex trafficking of a young girl, FBI officials said.
Alan Li, 26, is charged with attempted sex trafficking of a minor under 14 and attempted coercion or enticement of a minor, according to an arrest affidavit.
According to the affidavit, the investigation into Li began on March 12 when the FBI received a tip from a woman in Ohio who said her acquaintance, Li, had reached out to her on Snapchat to find his friend, Michael Chen, young girls in the Miami area.
The woman said she met Li through a dating/escort site and had gotten together with him for a night but they had lost contact with each other for about a year, the affidavit said.
The Hurricane season is on. Our meteorologists are ready. Sign up for the NBC 6 Weather newsletter to get the latest forecast in your inbox.
"My friend wants to meet young girls and he is willing to pay, can you help him out?" Li wrote the woman.
The woman then received a message from Chen, and when she asked him what age girl he was looking for, he replied "ideally 8-15," the affidavit said.
The woman told law enforcement she believed Li and Chen were the same person, and said she knew Li worked at Mount Sinai Hospital and identified him in a photo on the hospital's website, the affidavit said.
Local
After she sent the tip, the woman allowed a FBI "Online Covert Employee" to take over her Snapchat account to communicate with Li/Chen, the affidavit said.
When Li/Chen contacted the woman for an update, the FBI employee gave gim a phone number for an investigator posing as a "trafficker," the affidavit said.
"I heard you can set me up with some girls?" Li/Chen wrote the "trafficker," according to the affidavit.
"Perhaps. What Exactly you looking for?" the "trafficker" wrote back.
"10-14 in the Miami area," Li/Chen replied, according to the affidavit.
The "trafficker" told Li/Chen "Got a 9, 12, and 15 depending on what kind of service you want," and the two discussed sex acts and wearing protection, the affidavit said.
"Ok let's do the 12," Li/Chen eventually responded. "So what do I need to do in order to make this happen?"
The two discussed payment and rates, and agreed to $500 for one hour with the 12-year-old, the affidavit said.
Li/Chen then asked if he could pay in cash or Bitcoin, and said he didn't want to use CashApp because he'd have to provide his social security number, the affidavit said.
The two also discussed a "long-term set up" and Li/Chen mentioned he'd had a "live in situation" before with a 13-year-old girl, the affidavit said.
When the "trafficker" asked whose kid it was, Li/Chen responded, "Just someone I knew in Ohio who set it up for me," the affidavit said.
They then discussed him purchasing a minor to live with him, and the "trafficker" asked how he would keep the 12-year-old "quiet and unseen."
"Ya I mean I'll keep everything locked up but she is well behaved I assume?" Li/Chen wrote, according to the affidavit.
Li/Chen asked if the "trafficker" had ever set up a permanent situation and how much it cost, and the "trafficker" replied a one-time payment of $20,000, the affidavit said.
"Ok, that's reasonable. Just need to see the girl first obviously lol," Li/Chen replied.
On April 7, the two had a discussion about meeting in person and making the girl available, the affidavit said.
"She should be available for you after the weekend. Can do an hour and go from there. What you into so I can prep her," the trafficker wrote, adding "Nothing rough. No scars or bruises. Obvious but have to say it."
"Yup that's not a problem I'm not rough like that," Li/Chen replied, according to the affidavit.
The two arranged to meet on April 12 but Li/Chen canceled, saying he had to work late, the affidavit said.
But law enforcement already had surveillance on him and saw he had already left work that day, the affidavit said.
Li reached out to the woman the next day to try to find out more about the "trafficker," the affidavit said.
"Was mainly wondering about this dude you recommended for me and my friend Michael in SoFla," he wrote, according to the affidavit. "He's trustworthy right?"
There were no communications until April 29, when the "trafficker" messaged Li/Chen: "Got some high-end girls in town working the beach this weekend and next for F1. If you know any players send them my way," the affidavit said.
For the next few days they messaged intermittently about girls available, including ages and prices, and on May 2, Li/Chen messaged asking if anyone was available, the affidavit said.
The "trafficker" wrote back that 12 and 15 year olds were available and the two discussed rates for the 15-year-old before Li/Chen agreed to it, the affidavit said.
Li once again messaged the woman who introduced him to the "trafficker," the affidavit said.
"I'm worried about this dude T you recommended haha," Li/Chen wrote, adding that he "gets super aggressive sometimes" and saying that the two were going to meet but he "got spooked," the affidavit said.
"Based on my investigation, there is probable cause to believe that Li and Chen are the same person, engaged in the attempted sex trafficking of a minor and the attempted coercion and enticement of a minor," an FBI agent wrote in the affidavit.
Records showed Li was due in federal court on May 27 for an arraignment. Attorney information wasn't available.
Mount Sinai released a statement Monday on the arrest.
Mount Sinai’s top priority is the safety of our patients, visitors and employees. The individual is no longer employed with the medical center," the statement read. "Mount Sinai Medical Center cannot comment further on matters regarding ongoing investigations and legal proceedings. To the extent that we are aware of an incident, the appropriate authorities are contacted immediately and have our full cooperation."
