Man accused of Bellevue, WA OnlyFans human trafficking ring pleads not guilty
Bellevue trafficking suspect pleads not guilty
A 21-year-old suspect pleaded not guilty today to human trafficking and money laundering charges for allegedly running an organized online exploitation ring in Bellevue, police say.
SEATTLE, WA - A 21-year-old man accused of leading an organized crime ring that exploited women through adult content websites pleaded not guilty in court on Wednesday.
What we know:
Nikita Tyukalo faces multiple counts of human trafficking and money laundering. Investigators allege he and a handful of other men coerced women, including their own girlfriends, into producing sexually explicit content on platforms like OnlyFans and Chaturbate.
Tyukalo's defense attorney put in a plea of not guilty to all charges.
A judge maintained Tyukalo's bail at $5 million, and his trial has been scheduled for late July.
Nikita Tyukalo
The backstory:
According to investigators, the crime ring threatened women involved in this sexually explicit human trafficking organized crime ring with violence and blackmail.
Investigators claim Tyukalo maintained control over the women through physical abuse, threats of weapons, and sexually explicit pictures and videos he would leak or threaten to leak to loved ones.
In the court documents, several of the women said they would work 14-hour days streaming on Chaturbate, a live cam adult chat site, then produce content for hours for OnlyFans. They would do this work seven days a week and be fueled by illegal Adderall to keep them going, according to the court documents.
The women said they had no freedom, claiming that Tyukalo would prevent them from knowing the amount of money they were earning, and instead be given an allowance that equated to about $2 per hour of work, according to the court documents.
Dig deeper:
An Instagram account under Tyukalo's name features photos of the suspect surrounded by cash and speeding in expensive cars on King County roads. The account also included posts regarding potential employment opportunities.
Tyukalo faces four counts of human trafficking, a count of money laundering, and a count of leading organized crime.
He pleaded not guilty to all the charges.
While several other individuals are listed in court documents as connected to the alleged crimes, no other person has been charged at this time.
Tyukalo remains in custody, and his trial is set to begin in late July.
21-year-old charged in Bellevue 'OnlyFans house' human trafficking investigation
A 21-year-old is behind bars on $5 million bail, accused of leading an operation that coerced young girls into making explicit content online, taking advantage of them and using violence, while also throwing massive, disruptive parties at a Bellevue mansion nicknamed the "OnlyFans house."
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The Source: Information in this story came from original FOX 13 Seattle reporting.