Pikeville landlord pleads guilty to five counts of sex trafficking of minors

A well-known Pike County property owner pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court Friday to five counts of sex trafficking of minors in a deal that eliminated six counts of drug tracking filed against him earlier this year.

Ernest B. Ray, also known as Junior, was indicted in February on the charges and pleaded not guilty in March, but rescinded that plea during his hearing Friday.

On Friday, Ray admitted recruiting girls under the age of 18 for sex acts and paid them with alcohol, money and drugs.

According to the facts in Ray’s plea agreement, Ray paid the girls on multiple occasions between 2010 and 2016 to perform sex acts with each other while he watched and masturbated.

Ray, 55, said he knew the girls were under the age of 18, and committed the crimes at a property he owned in Pikeville.

On other occasions, Ray drove the girls to a rural part of the county in his 2008 White Ford 350 pickup truck, according to the facts listed in the plea agreement.

Each charge carries a recommended sentence of not less than 10 years in prison. Under the plea agreement, the counts will not be consolidated when forming Ray’s recommended sentence.

Ray might also have to pay a fine of not more than $250,000 for each count, and could be put under supervision for not less than five years when, or if, he is eventually released from prison.

According to property records at the Pike County Clerk’s office, Ray has held deeds and liens on dozens of properties in the county.

During Friday’s hearing, Ray said he was self-employed, and referred to himself as a repossession agent and the manager of rental properties.

His plea deal eliminated charges of drug distribution, which included distribution of hydrocodone and buprenorphine, which are pain killers; alprazolam, an anti-anxiety medication similar to Valium; and ecstasy and marijuana.

Ray’s attorney, Jerry Patton, declined to comment on the plea agreement.

Ray is scheduled to be sentenced Oct. 11 in Lexington.

This story was originally published June 21, 2019 at 3:43 PM.