Man pleads to promoting prostitution

FLORENCE — A man accused of offering a teenage girl for sale pleaded guilty this week to promoting prostitution and was taken into the custody of of the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, court records show.

Gunici Ionut, 19, pleaded guilty to second-degree promoting prostitution, according to court documents. The agreement included pleading to a 10-year sentence, which was suspended for 60 months.

It also called for Ionut immediately to be transferred to ICE custody and comply with the Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act.

Florence Police Sgt. Cliff Billingsley said the incident involved Ionut approaching a man in the parking lot of a Florence business and asking if he wanted to buy a girl who told authorities she was 16. The man refused the offer and notified police.

Billingsley said officials with the Department of Human Resources were contacted and took custody of the girl.