BELLEVUE, Wash. — A Bellevue house is at the center of a human trafficking sting.
Court documents released today paint a picture of what was going on inside.
KIRO 7 spoke with a woman who says she was recruited multiple times while she was still a minor.
Saffron Laframboise, 18, who was 16 years old at the time, says the suspect in this case, Nikita Tyukalo, 21, started trying to coerce her into creating explicit online content two years ago.
“For them to try to recruit me multiple times…it wasn’t just once. It’s just so baffling to me,” says Laframboise. “And, the fact that it’s not just me. It’s so many of these other girls.”
As a result, Tyukalo is facing four counts of Human Trafficking in the 2nd-degree along with charges of money laundering and organized crime.
It follows a history of allegations dating back to 2024, which includes assault, strangulation, and threats of violence for those young women living at the house, according to court documents.
But, Saffron says the allure is there.
“Nikita definitely makes it sound promising,” she says.
“Like these girls are going to make a lot of money and have a lot of opportunities. Be able to fly out to these really expensive cities, nice places. And, it just doesn’t end up being the case.”
Prosecutors claim Tyukalo was in complete control of their OnlyFans accounts while recruiting and coercing them into sexual acts, then blackmailing them if they didn’t comply.
Constant threats of physical and psychological abuse followed, according to court documents.
“People need to know who these people are and what they do,” Laframboise urges.
“It’s just so disgusting to see it happening over and over and over again with so many people. And, see dozens of girls be a victim of these behaviors.”
Saffron says she just wants to advocate for those who are too afraid to speak up.
Meanwhile, Tyukalo is currently being held on $5 million bail as prosecutors say he’s likely to threaten or intimidate witnesses.
Resources are available for any victims who find themselves in a similar situation, including The National Human Trafficking Hotline at 1-888-373-7888.