Man set to be sentenced after kidnapping, trafficking 2 women in Elk Grove

A man convicted of kidnapping and human trafficking, among other charges, is set to be sentenced on Friday in Sacramento County, after holding two women captive in an Elk Grove apartment nearly two years ago.

The case started as a missing person report out of Stockton in April 2024. A woman's family was concerned after not hearing from her and reported her missing, searching for 10 days. 

On the 10th day, the missing woman's mother, who spoke to CBS Sacramento without using her name or face to protect her daughter's identity, said she received a call from Elk Grove police who said her daughter was alive.

"The overwhelming relief for me as a mother to a child who was missing is extremely overwhelming. The pain and the fear and the thoughts that run through your head while you're looking for a child, no matter how young or how old they are, and no matter the circumstances, is a grief. And a trauma that… that cannot be put into words. And to hear from the police department that she had recovered, we were overwhelmed with gratitude and pride for her strength," the woman's mother said.

The woman was kidnapped in Stockton by Frank Hicks and taken to an apartment in Elk Grove. There, she and another woman were forced to ingest fentanyl and alcohol, and were forced into sex work in Oakland and Stockton.

Hicks, according to the women's testimony during his trial, threatened to kill them if they tried to escape. He sexually assaulted them and kept cameras at the apartment, they said, so they couldn't get away.

On the 10th day, however, one woman made her escape. She used a stranger's cell phone to call 911, and Elk Grove police responded. She told police about the second woman who had been held captive for a month before. Both women were freed. 

For nearly two years, the two women worked with investigators and shared their experiences in court during the trial. The Elk Grove police detective on the case, Tricia Barraza, told CBS Sacramento that their bravery was powerful. 

"I can't even explain how brave they were to be able to tell me what happened to them, come forward, face their attacker, their trafficker, and tell that courtroom what happened to them," Barraza said.

Barraza, who has decades of experience in law enforcement and on human trafficking cases, said it's rare for women to share their testimony and hopes the story of these survivors will inspire others.

"A lot of these women are put into this situation unwillingly. They don't want to be out there. They don't want to be doing the things they're forced to do. They're beaten down so much, for them to come forward and to tell their story, takes a lot of bravery and I'm proud of them for doing that," Barraza said.

Hicks is scheduled to be sentenced on Friday in Sacramento County Superior Court.