Man accused of forcing California woman into prostitution

ORLANDO, Fla. – A Florida man is accused of inviting a California woman on an all-expenses paid trip to party in Orlando and then forcing her into prostitution.

News outlets report 40-year-old Joseph Masinas was arrested Tuesday on charges including human trafficking. The Metropolitan Bureau of Investigation in central Florida says the woman and Masinas had spoken on Instagram for months before they met up in California and he invited her on the trip.

She told deputies she arrived at a city motel in January and was told she’d have to prostitute herself to earn money to get back home. It says the woman refused and was beaten, later complying out of fear. The woman was rescued days later after calling a human-trafficking hotline. It’s unclear if Masinas has a lawyer.