Image Sources: Booking photo of Jerome Anthony Oliver courtesy of the Cumberland County District Attorney’s Office. Exterior image of Cumberland County Prison contributed by Cumberland County Prison via Google Maps; © Google.
On April 28, 2025, Pennsylvania State Police, initiated by Trooper Travis Martin, stopped a black Ford Edge with temporary Missouri license plates on the PA Turnpike in West Pennsboro Township in Cumberland County, PA. (Cumberland County District Attorney’s Office) Inside were 52-year-old Jerome Anthony Oliver of Bayonne, New Jersey, a 19-year-old female, and a 17-year-old girl from Missouri who had been entered into NCIC as “missing and endangered.”
Items were found inside the vehicle that were consistent with commercial sex trafficking, including condoms, sexual lubricants, multiple hotel key cards, cell phones, and cash.
The 17-year-old victim later told troopers she had met Oliver six months prior in Kansas City. She explained that Oliver, against her will, had sex with her nearly every day, sometimes when she was sleeping or under the influence of marijuana he provided. He allegedly gave her money, clothing, a phone, and a diamond bracelet.
On April 26, 2025, he told her they were traveling so she could work as an exotic dancer/stripper, but later admitted she would be having sex for money. Oliver then created and posted online advertisements offering her for sex. The 19-year-old passenger corroborated these details.
Oliver has been charged with Trafficking in Minors and Interference with the Custody of Children. According to the most recent updates, he is being held without bail in the Cumberland County Prison. A preliminary hearing was scheduled for May 8th, 2025.
Hotels Have a Legal Duty to Intervene
Multiple hotel key cards were found in Oliver’s possession, confirming that the trafficking occurred at hotel properties during the cross-country trip. Cumberland County District Attorney Seán M. McCormack commented that the victim was recruited and groomed in order to “sell her to men in hotel rooms.” (Cumberland County District Attorney’s Office)
This pattern is tragically common. Traffickers frequently rely on hotels and motels to facilitate abuse, banking on minimal oversight and staff who aren’t trained or empowered to intervene.
Under federal and state law, hotels and motels may be held civilly liable when they:
- Knowingly profit from trafficking activity
- Fail to implement or enforce anti-trafficking training and policies
- Ignore obvious signs of trafficking, such as repeated cash transactions, long stays without valid identification, or minors accompanied by unrelated adults.
When businesses choose profits over safety, survivors have the right to hold them accountable in civil court, bringing systematic failures to light.
Our Commitment to Survivors
At Andreozzi + Foote, we’ve worked with survivors of trafficking nationwide, including those who were harmed in hotel and motel settings. We are committed to helping survivors pursue justice and holding institutions accountable when they enable abuse.
If you or someone you know is a survivor of trafficking, you are not alone. You deserve support, safety, and justice. Whether you’re ready to take legal action or are just beginning to explore your options, our trauma-informed legal team is here to help.
Contact us by phone or email today.
