Young Girl Sold For Sex In 6 States; Pimp Pleads Guilty In Tampa

TAMPA, FL ? A 33-year-old Houston, Texas, man has pleaded guilty to sex trafficking a minor from Houston to Tampa.

United States Attorney Roger B. Handberg for the U.S. Middle District Court in Tampa announced Monday that Jamel Muldrew pleaded guilty to sex trafficking of a minor, coercion and enticement of a minor to engage in sexual activity, use of a facility of interstate commerce in aid of racketeering, and interstate transportation of a person for prostitution.

Muldrew faces a minimum mandatory sentence of 10 years and up to life in federal prison. A sentencing date has not yet been set.

According to court documents, on April 9, the Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office conducted a sting operation to identify victims of human trafficking, rescue the victims and arrest their traffickers.

As part of this operation, an undercover officer saw what appeared to be an underage girl being offered for sex in an online escort advertisement and arranged for the girl to meet him at a hotel for sex in exchange for $800.

On the day of the meeting, Muldrew arrived at the hotel driving a black Chevrolet Impala, with the girl in the passenger seat. The girl got out of the car and walked into the hotel room where she was detained by detectives.

Meanwhile, other detectives approached Muldrew who tried to flee but was quickly apprehended. At the time of his arrest, detectives found multiple fake identity cards in his possession for both himself and the girl.

An investigation revealed that Muldrew had been trafficking the young girl across the country to engage in prostitution. Between February and April, Muldrew took her to Texas, New Jersey, Maryland, North Carolina, Georgia and Florida to have sex for hire.

This case was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations, the Hillsborough County Sheriff?s Office and the Houston Police Department.