Man Used Au Pair Site To Get Young Girls Into His Home To Assault -- But Couldn't Scare Them Into Silence

[Warning: Potentially Triggering Content]

A Michigan man has been sentenced after using a job site to lure women into his home to assault them.

In a horrifying case that’s finally over after several months, 32-year-old Arisknight Winfree (pictured above) has been found guilty and sentenced for sexual exploitation. The East Lansing resident had four victims, including two minors, dating back to 2022. He previously pled no contest to kidnapping, coercing and enticing someone to travel for the purposes of illegal sexual activity, attempted coercion and enticement, and two counts of sexual exploitation of a minor.

Prosecutors explained the nature of his crimes, and it’s really sick stuff. He used a website for hiring au pairs, pretending to be hiring — in order to to lure women into his home with the intention of assaulting them. They say he “targeted his victims in multiple ways, including through use of the messaging service on various social media apps and through an online service that connects individuals, often young women, with host families in need of childcare and light housework”.

Related: Dad Who Forced Son On Treadmill Found Guilty For His Death

So horrifying… but the details just make everything more sickening.

One of his victims was an 18-year-old girl who was flown out to his home on September 22 under the guise of needing someone to watch his 7-year-old niece every other week. Upon arrival, the victim — known only as A.S. — noticed there were no signs of children whatsoever. Even more ominous, “all the windows were covered with paper and cardboard” as well. She also saw “several knives and guns” around the home.

FOX 17 reported via legal docs this young woman was able to escape, however, when her family back home in Kansas conducted a welfare check. Luckily “with the assistance of the police, the victim left the residence with her belongings and returned to Kansas”.

Another one of his victims wasn’t so lucky. The 18-year-old was living in Italy when the website AuPairs.com brought them into contact. He began to lie about needing help with his niece around September 5, 2022, and by October 12 he was flying the young woman out to his Michigan residence. Screenshots released by the US Attorney’s Office show a bit of his communication with her, in which he promised to cover all her expenses and discussed payment for the au pair services.

He even said “you’re going to have so much fun” — which is absolutely chilling with what we know now. See the real screenshot for yourself (below):

A previous release from the Attorney’s Office described what happened after this poor woman arrived to his residence, stating “Winfree demanded the Italian teen clean his house before handcuffing her, placing a ball gag in her mouth, and raping her”. In her own words via court docs, she recalled:

“He asked me whether I consented to him touching me and whether I liked that. I was afraid and said yes. He pulled my hair and forced me to consent to what he was doing. He asked me to repeat ‘I do like it’,’ ‘I do’, ‘yes’ several times while he was filming and taking pictures.”

Forcing her to say she consented… that’s really sick. It’s at this point he left her tied up until 2 a.m. Eventually he let her go home, but only if she swore never to tell:

“After that, I asked him again I wanted to go back home [to Italy]. He instructed me not to say anything to anyone.”

As soon as she got back home, the victim immediately got a rape kit. Investigators also ended up finding proof of this assault in the home in the form of video tapes, as well as a conversation with a friend where he said he “intended to kill the Italian woman and dispose of her body to avoid detection or prosecution”. Sickening.

Another victim was a 17-year-old girl he was accused of soliciting nudes from over social media. He reportedly picked her up from her high school on November 30 and brought her home where he “engaged in sexual acts with her”. His final victim — and the youngest — was a 16-year-old girl who he instructed to “engage in sexual acts and send images and videos to him through SnapChat and later through WhatsApp“.

A second screenshot from these disturbing situations surfaced through the Attorney’s Office and showed Winfree say he wanted “to recruit more high school girls for him to sexually exploit”. Ones “that aren’t fat.” And then “lol.” Disgusting.

Finally, this monster was caught and arrested in January, and on Monday was sentenced to life in prison for his crimes. US Attorney Mark Totten said in a statement after the sentencing:

“Winfree posed a danger to the whole world from his home here in West Michigan. My office will do everything in its power to seek out and prosecute perpetrators like him, who use the Internet to exploit others. To victims, we stand ready to listen and to protect. And to everyone who uses the internet, be vigilant: you never know for sure who is on the other side of the screen.”

So scary… Thankfully these poor women got the justice they deserved.

If you or someone you know has experienced sexual violence and would like to learn more about resources, consider checking out https://www.rainn.org/resources.

[Image via U.S. Attorney’s Office]