River City Casino St. Louis Helped Catch Pimp Who Trafficked Teen from Kids’ Home

An alert employee at the River City Casino in St. Louis helped expose a self-described “pimp” who groomed a teenage girl from the age of 14 before trafficking her from a children’s home for sex at the casino hotel.

Mack Mitchell pleaded guilty on July 21 in U.S. District Court in St. Louis to one count of sex trafficking of a minor, a day before he was due to stand trial on charges stemming from his alleged exploitation of a 16-year-old runaway.

Under a plea agreement, prosecutors will dismiss three additional charges, including conspiracy and obstruction, while both sides jointly recommend a 12-year prison sentence.

According to a statement previously provided by River City Casino to Fox 2 St. Louis, one of its frontline employees noticed suspicious activity and alerted the property’s security team, which in turn contacted police.

The casino said the employee’s actions helped launch the investigation that ultimately led to federal charges.

Federal prosecutors originally charged Mitchell and co-defendant Angel Henderson in June 2024.

‘Got One!’

Mitchell admitted he first met the victim, identified in court only as A.T., on the social media app Tagged when she was about 14 years old. By the time she was 16 and living in foster care with the Missouri Department of Social Services, prosecutors said he had groomed her for commercial sex.

On Feb. 23, 2024, the teenager texted Mitchell asking him to pick her up so they could “make us sum money,” court records state.

Mitchell replied within a minute before texting an unidentified woman:

“Got one.”

Mitchell arranged an Uber to collect the girl from Epworth Children’s Home before driving her from a St. Louis gas station to River City Casino.

There, he introduced her to a woman who photographed the teenager and posted online advertisements offering commercial sex acts, prosecutors said.

The girl engaged in commercial sex acts at the casino, with Mitchell receiving the proceeds, according to the plea agreement.

Casinos a Target

Casinos are often targeted by sex traffickers because they combine a steady flow of potential customers, large amounts of cash, a degree of anonymity, and on-site hotels where commercial sex can take place.

River City told FOX 2 that its staff undergo an “extensive human trafficking training course, which outlines the prevalence of the problem, and it teaches our employees the signs and symptoms to look out for.”