Blog – Page 3 – I Stop Traffic

Conviction in connection with prostitution business operated in Maryland, D.C. and Virginia. A 31-year old Silver Spring man was sentenced today to 132 months in prison for the sex trafficking of a female minor.

Cooper Kweme was sentenced in District Court in Alexandria, VA for trafficking a juvenile female, in connection with a prostitution business Kweme operated earlier this year in Maryland, D.C. and Virginia.

According to evidence presented in court, Kweme used the internet to advertise women as prostitutes for his business. In February of this year, he reportedly recruited a 16-year-old female in to work as a prostitute, after meeting the girl on an online social network for teens where he claimed to be in his mid-20s.

On Valentine’s Day, Kweme and the teenager were said to have began an intimate relationship and he took sexually suggestive photographs of her, which he later used to advertise her on the internet as a prostitute. From March to May 2011, the girl was prostituted in northern Virginia and Maryland, where clients paid the teenager for performing sexual acts. The money was turned over to Kweme, who would give her a percentage of the client fee.

“Mr. Kweme trolled social networking sites and then lured and groomed a juvenile girl into his prostitution business,” said U.S. Attorney Neil MacBride, one of three officials announcing Kweme’s sentencing.

Kweme was arrested by the Arlington County Police Department in June and pled guilty in July. After completing his prison sentence, Kweme will serve a term of five years on supervised release and be required to register as a sex offender.

“It’s a sad reality that people prey on our children. As a community, we must be aware of our children’s interactions and report sexual abuse so that we can bring criminals to justice.” said James McJunkin, Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI’s Washington Field Office, among the officials announcing the sentencing.

The case was investigated by the Arlington County Police Department and the FBI’s Northern Virginia Resident Agency. Two assistant United States Attorneys prosecuted the case on behalf of the United States.