ALEXANDRIA, Va. (AP) — A Manassas man has been sentenced to 23 years in prison for his role in a gang-led prostitution ring that recruited high school girls who were threatened if they refused to participate.

Twenty-eight-year-old Donyel Pier Dove pleaded guilty to sex trafficking of a juvenile in June.

Court documents state that the gang members recruited attractive teenage girls to participate either through Facebook or by approaching them on the street or at school. Several of the girls were either beaten or cut with a knife when they tried to quit or expressed reluctance about participating.