Jimmy Francois, LI rap artist known as 'Bentley Bugz,' charged with sex trafficking 16-year-old girl

A rap artist from Elmont accused of sex trafficking a 16-year-old girl in 2024 pleaded not guilty on Friday in Brooklyn federal court to criminal charges detailed in a six-count indictment.

Jimmy Francois, known as "Bentley Bugz," used violence and threats to intimidate the teen into prostitution during a three-month period, according to court documents filed by the office of Joseph Nocella, the U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of New York.

U.S. Magistrate Judge Clay H. Kaminsky ordered Francois, 37, held without bail during a brief arraignment on Friday afternoon. Francois is scheduled to return to court on April 2.

Prosecutors said in court papers that Francois also took sexually explicit images of the victim, identified by prosecutors "Jane Doe," and posted them online in prostitution advertisements.

"The defendant preyed on a vulnerable child and sold her body for his own profit, while subjecting her to physical violence and threats," Nocella said. "With today’s arrest, Francois is being held to account for his cruel and depraved crimes."

Francois was arrested in January in Miami and brought to New York earlier this week by the U.S. Marshals Service, Assistant U.S. Attorney Rachel A. Bennek told Kaminsky.

"We are fairly confident that he is overcharged," Francois’ attorney, John Russo, of Queens, told reporters after the hearing. "Once the facts are known, it will be a lot less salacious than it appears."

According to court filings, Francois sex trafficked Jane Doe through multiple states, including New York, between June and August 2024. Francois forced the teen to engage in sex with multiple clients on a daily basis, the papers said.

Law-enforcement officials recovered a video that showed Francois assaulting and demeaning the girl. "I will personally break your bones," he told the girl in the video.

"I’mma violate you ... you gonna have broken bones ... in your hotel. No hospital, no nothing," Francois also allegedly told the girl.

Francois also assaulted other women in the victim’s presence as a way to intimidate her, prosecutors said.