A woman’s typed cell phone message to police during a traffic stop - “GET ME OUT OF THE CAR” - led to the arrest Wednesday of a Cranston couple on charges of kidnapping and sex trafficking charges.

Niesha L. Bessell, 29, and Michael Gomes, 28, of 151 Narragansett St., were arraigned Wednesday night and ordered held on $200,000 surety bail. They were due to be re-arraigned Thursday morning.

Bessell is charged with trafficking of persons for forced labor or commercial sexual activity, kidnapping, simple assault and two counts of possession of a knife over three inches in length. Gomes is charged with conspiracy to commit kidnapping and trafficking of persons for forced labor or commercial sexual activity.

According to Rhode Island State Police, Troopers Sean Crowley and James Gaffney from the Lincoln Woods barracks stopped a vehicle on Potters Avenue in Providence at approximately 12:10 a.m. on Wednesday for failing to display a front license plate. Bissell was identified as the operator, and Gomes as the front seat passenger.

During the stop, police said, the rear seat passenger - identified as a 24-year-old East Providence woman - “appeared to be shaking and would not make eye contact with the troopers.” The troopers observed the woman typing on her cell phone’s keyboard, and she then turned the screen with the message seeking help for one of the troopers to see.

At that point, police said, the woman was removed from the vehicle, and she “began shaking uncontrollably and crying.” She is said to have then told the troopers that she had been “kidnapped by force and had previously been forced into prostitution by Bessell and Gomes.”

All of the vehicle’s occupants were transported to the Lincoln Woods barracks, and the state police Major Crimes Unit took over the investigation. Detectives found that approximately 20 minutes before the traffic stop, the victim had been lured into a meeting in East Providence with Bessell and Gomes, and that the couple had “forcibly abducted her.” The victim was then able to dial 911 on her cell phone, but had been unable to advise anyone of what was occurring.

Over the course of the day on Wednesday, detectives continued to gather evidence and interviewed the victim, who said she had escaped from Bessell and Gomes “over a year ago” and was “currently living in seclusion after having been forced to commit acts of prostitution.”

“The Rhode Island State Police encourages other potential victims of human trafficking to contact law enforcement, as help and a support network is available,” state police said. “Combating incidents of human trafficking requires a combined cooperative approach by law enforcement and the need for victims to come forward and trust the available resources.”