A man from Southern Utah appeared in court facing federal sex trafficking charges. Aaron Kern, 27, of St. George, Utah, was indicted by a federal grand jury on March 11, 2025. During his initial court appearance, U.S. Magistrate Judge Paul Kohler ordered him detained.
Court documents allege that between November 2023 and December 2024, Kern recruited and threatened a victim to engage in commercial sex acts while he was incarcerated for an unrelated state offense. He allegedly forced the victim to provide him with a large portion of the proceeds and attempted to have her smuggle suboxone into the correctional facility.
Kern is accused of threatening the victim with violence if she resisted his demands. In one instance, he reportedly said, “obviously the only thing that is going to work is me breaking your face when you don’t want to listen,” and “you are going to have a lot of days where you are drinking through a straw.” He also allegedly made threats concerning the safety of her family members.
During the investigation, law enforcement discovered online prostitution advertisements dictated by Kern and found in his jail cell a handwritten contract for the victim to sign along with notes describing how he intended to control her.
The announcement was made by Acting United States Attorney Felice Viti of the District of Utah. The Washington County Drug/Gang Task Force is investigating the case, with Assistant United States Attorney Christopher Burton prosecuting.
It is important to note that an indictment is merely an allegation, and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.