McHenry man charged with pimping minor

An 18-year-old McHenry man is facing up to 15 years in prison after his weekend arrest on accusations he was pimping a minor girl as a prostitute.

Josue A. Gomez, of the 4200 block of Crystal Lake Road, is charged with one count of juvenile pimping stemming from an incident that occurred Sept. 21 in McHenry, court records indicate.

A criminal complaint filed Saturday states Gomez received $40 from a girl under the age of 16 knowing she had earned it working as a prostitute.

Gomez appeared in court Saturday on the Class 1 felony charge where his bond was set at $80,000, meaning he will need to post $8,000 cash to go free while the case is pending. However, U.S. Immigration and Customs enforcement also has placed a hold on him, so release may not be possible even if he comes up with the bond.

His attorney, Margi Worth, said Gomez intends to fight the allegations.

"The state has the burden of proving each and every element of the charge, and he is going to hold them to that standard in as expedited a fashion as possible," she said.

Gomez is scheduled to return to court Wednesday. If found guilty, he could face between four and 15 years in prison.