Pastor gets life in prison on child sex trafficking charges

TOLEDO, Ohio (AP) — A former minister in Ohio convicted of child sex trafficking after a woman said he groomed her for sex when she was 14 has been sentenced to life in prison.

A federal judge sentenced 40-year-old Anthony Haynes Thursday.

Prosecutors say Haynes paid the girl for sex during a three-year period after promising her mother he would protect her.

The now 19-year-old woman testified Haynes later introduced her to two other pastors and encouraged her to have sex with them.

The two other ministers already have been sentenced after pleading guilty to child sex trafficking.

Haynes has denied having sex with the girl and said she tried to manipulate him. He also has filed a motion for his conviction to be vacated.