CORPUS CHRISTI, Tx — A revelation emerged Thursday in the ongoing sex trafficking case against Amanda Talbert and Noraier George Manassian: the person who first tipped off investigators was having a sexual relationship with one of the defendants.
Defense attorneys revealed in court that Vincent T. Luciano II, Regional Director for the Central Texas Region of the Texas Department of Public Safety, was the person who alerted the Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission to investigate Talbert and Manassian.
According to the defense, Luciano had a sexual relationship with Talbert, and money was exchanged between them.
"I believe it wasn't until about a year and a half into the case that we found out who the tipster was for the entire case, and that information came out today, and the tipster for this entire case was a DPS agent," said Lisa Greenberg, one of Manassian's defense attorneys. "The DPS agent was close friends with the TABC agent, tipped him off to this case, but never disclosed to us that that tipster, that DPS agent, that supervisor for DPS, was having a sexual relationship with the defendant, Amanda Talbert, had a long-term relationship. There was money exchanged."
During Thursday's hearing, a TABC investigator—whose face was ordered not to be shown by the judge, whose voice was ordered altered, and whose name cannot be used—testified that he received the tip from Luciano, who was a friend. The investigator acknowledged that he later learned of Luciano's sexual relationship with Talbert.
According to the investigator's testimony, when he discovered Luciano's relationship with the defendant, he turned the information over to DPS internal affairs and did not pursue it further, citing the friendship between himself and Luciano.
In a final report, Luciano was labeled as an "unwitting witness." However, the TABC investigator testified Thursday that Luciano was never interviewed in relation to the case.
Talbert, 46, faces a total of six charges: two counts of indecency with a child with sexual assault and four counts of continuous trafficking of persons. Manassian, 80, faces eight charges including five counts of sexual assault of a child, one count of sex trafficking of a child, one count of online solicitation of a minor, and one count of solicitation or prostitution of a person under 18 years of age. Both defendants have pleaded not guilty to all charges.
Who is Vincent T. Luciano II?
Luciano is a high-ranking official within the Texas Department of Public Safety. According to DPS records, he was promoted to Regional Director of the Central Texas Region in September 2022, a position based in San Antonio where he oversees all DPS operations, including personnel, for the region.
Luciano began his career with DPS in 1995 and has nearly 30 years of service with the agency. He served as a Texas Highway Patrol Trooper from 1996 to 1998, and a Criminal Law Enforcement Trooper from 1998 to 2000. He then promoted to sergeant in DPS Narcotics in Lubbock before promoting to lieutenant in 2007 in Corpus Christi. He was promoted to Criminal Investigations Division lieutenant, then captain, and in 2018 promoted to major. Most recently, he served as the major of the Criminal Investigations Division in North Texas Region.
Prior to his career with DPS, Luciano served two years with the Nueces County Sheriff's Office.
Defense Claims Material Witness Was Hidden
Defense attorneys say Luciano is a material witness who participated in the investigation, but the state never disclosed his relationship with Talbert or interviewed him about his involvement.
"If he is the person that tipped off the entire case and they don't give us an interview with him, they don't show his bias, his motivation in starting this case, it changes everything for the defense and it's like hiding, you know, this very, very important piece of information," Greenberg said.
Defense attorney Terry Shamsie said they only learned about Luciano's role after forcing disclosure through pretrial motions filed by Greenberg.
"Well, I think he's a material witness and a material witness that has also participated in the investigation of the case, and they knew that and they haven't disclosed it and it's been 5 years since they knew it and they're forced to disclose it and the only reason they're really forced to disclose it is (because of) Lisa Greenberg and her pretrial motions forcing them to name every person," Shamsie said. "And then finally in July of 25, four and a half years after the investigation, then they disclose it."
The defense attorneys said they learned Thursday there may have been an internal investigation into Luciano, but they have never been provided with any interviews or notes from him.
"No interviews, no notes," Greenberg said. "The person who says start investigating this, look here, and his agency is investigating these defendants, pretends that he's not a part of it, pretends that he's not a witness to it, and pretends that he didn't participate in it. And so we think that's a big deal. We think that it's unethical. We don't believe that the attorney generals that were assigned to this case knew about it, but we needed to question the agent in charge who didn't disclose the information about his close friend."
Greenberg told KRIS 6 News Luciano's involvement matters to the case.
"Well, DPS is investigating this supposed human trafficking case, but this agent, this supervisor, is with the defendant and these witnesses partying, driving around the other defendant. I think there's allegations that they were going to strip clubs. There was money exchanged, and then this DPS supervisor is being lauded as a hero for being this tipster or being involved in human trafficking cases when in our case, he knows the information, he participates in it, witnesses see him, and then he decides, I mean, I don't know why he decides what his motive is. Maybe there was a fight, maybe you know he wanted to get the girl he was sleeping with in trouble, but he tips off his buddy, the TABC agent, go investigate this person," Greenberg said. "It's like if I say go investigate my ex-boyfriend and go look at these things, but don't look at me and my participation in it. So there's a bias, there's a taint to the entire case."
KRIS 6 News has reached out to the Texas Department of Public Safety for comment on the status of any internal investigation into Luciano and his involvement in this case. We have not yet received a response.
