BISMARCK, N.D. (AP) — An appeals court has upheld the conviction of a man accused of sex trafficking in the Williston area.

A federal jury in 2015 found Keith Graves guilty on five counts of sex trafficking by force or coercion, and distribution of methamphetamine. It was one of the first high-profile human trafficking cases in the North Dakota oil patch.

The 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals rejected Graves' notion that he the government didn't give him evidence in a timely manner and in a form that allowed him to adequately prepare for proceedings. Graves represented himself at trial.

Graves...