A North Miami robbery that left a paralyzed man tied up and robbed has spiraled into a sprawling human trafficking case, with police now alleging the woman who fled the scene that night was herself a victim who had been exploited since she was 16 years old. Brandon Marquez Flint, 33, already jailed on armed home invasion charges, is now facing additional charges, including human trafficking and sexual battery.
Robbery Targeted a Victim Police Say Was Seen as an Easy Target
According to Local 10 News, the armed home invasion happened at roughly 3:30 a.m. on July 9 at a rental apartment in the 800 block of Northeast 121st Street, where police say suspects targeted the paralyzed victim believing he was an “easy lick” who kept cash and marijuana on hand. The victim, who is paralyzed from the waist down and uses a motorized scooter, was pushed off the scooter, had his hands bound with a USB charging cable, and was dragged into a bedroom during the break-in, according to NBC 6 South Florida. Police reported that a bank bag containing $2,000 was taken from the home.
A woman who was present inside the apartment fled on foot and called police from nearby, per NBC 6's reporting. She later told investigators, per the arrest report, that the meeting had been arranged by a man she knew as Brandon, and that she had gone to the victim's home to have sex with him. Investigators matched her phone number for Brandon to a number that had been texting with a second suspect, Jamarcus Malcolm Brooks, shortly before the break-in, and that same number was linked to Flint.
Texts Show Lookout Timed to the Minute
Text message logs obtained by investigators show Brooks messaged Flint — saved in his phone under the nickname “Twin Twin” — at 3:17 a.m. on July 9, asking, “Let me know when she coming out?” Flint replied with a thumbs-up emoji at 3:27 a.m., just moments before the break-in, the station's report notes. Another message quoted in the report instructed someone to “make sure she don't forget 6ft long dreads mouth full of golds,” apparently describing the intended target.
Police records state that Brooks admitted to planning the robbery and told investigators that Flint and his girlfriend picked him up in the surrounding neighborhood after he fled when officers arrived at the scene. Both Flint and Brooks remain held without bond at the MetroWest Detention Center in Miami-Dade County, the same outlet reports.
Woman Says She Was Groomed Since Age 16
The woman told investigators, per the arrest report, that she had been a victim of human trafficking since she was 16, after meeting Flint and co-suspect Marianne Rocio Davila Luna when she ran away from home.
The woman said Flint groomed her and that he raped her along with two other men, according to the arrest report cited by NBC 6. She alleged that Flint and Davila Luna forced her to have sex with multiple men in exchange for money and kept the proceeds for themselves.
The woman also told investigators she was beaten after saying she no longer wanted to perform sex for money, and that she was held down while Flint burned her leg with a cigarette. Davila Luna allegedly told her to stop communicating or cooperating with police and sought to help get Flint released, according to NBC 6. Authorities also said they found online ads featuring the woman that were linked to a phone number shared by Flint and Davila Luna.
New Charges Carry Life-Sentence Exposure
Flint faces charges including human trafficking, deriving support from prostitution proceeds, sexual battery and other offenses. Under Florida Statute § 787.06, many human trafficking charges may be classified as first-degree felonies, and life imprisonment is possible in certain cases; many convictions also require sex offender registration, according to legal analysis published by The Advocate for You. All allegations contained in the arrest reports remain unproven claims until tested in court.
Davila Luna remains at large as of October, while Flint and Brooks stay behind bars at MetroWest. Flint was initially booked on July 12 on the armed home invasion charges before the additional counts followed.
Case Reflects a Wider Pattern in Miami-Dade
Data from LSF Miami Bridge Youth & Family Services found that Miami-Dade County tied with Broward County for the highest total of official human trafficking reports in Florida between 2023 and 2024, with minors accounting for roughly 40 percent of identified victims in Miami-Dade. In February, Florida officials announced new funding to expand the Miami-Dade State Attorney's Office Human Trafficking Task Force, which works alongside more than 70 sworn law enforcement officers across local agencies to investigate sex trafficking and child exploitation, according to Florida Politics.
