Houston Woman Pleads Guilty in Federal Court to Trafficking 13-Year-Old Female into Louisiana to Perform Commercial Sex Acts

New Orleans, Louisiana – A Houston, Texas woman has pleaded guilty in federal court to trafficking a 13-year-old female into Louisiana to perform commercial sex acts.

Gee met her co-conspirator, Randi Lewis (a/k/a “Teddy,” a/k/a “Teddy P.”) when she was about sixteen years old, according to court documents. Lewis solicited Gee to perform commercial sex acts for him, and she agreed. Lewis also established a set of rules for Gee to follow, including how she was to behave, what she was to dress, with whom she was allowed to interact (i.e., look at and speak to), and how much she was expected to earn through daily commercial sex acts. Lewis used a location-sharing cellular phone application to follow Gee’s location on a regular basis. Lewis reportedly engaged in sexual actions with Gee on a daily basis and used aggression and threats of violence against her.

Lewis and Gee met the victim, who was thirteen at the time, in the Houston, Texas region on or before June 21, 2021. Gee recruited the victim to do commercial sex acts under the supervision of Lewis and introduced the victim to Lewis. Lewis and Gee instructed and advised the victim on how to conduct successful commercial sex activities, such as how to behave, what to wear, how to detect and evade law enforcement, and how to best recruit commercial sex customers. Lewis arranged for him, Gee, and the victim to travel to New Orleans on a Greyhound bus in order for his co-conspirator and the victim to engage in commercial sex acts. Gee and the victim performed many commercial sex acts in the New Orleans area between June 22, 2021, and June 24, 2021. Lewis demanded that the victim give him the majority, if not all, of the money she made through commercial sex acts.

Gee and the victim solicited commercial sex “dates” in a variety of methods, all under the supervision of Lewis. They began by walking down streets, recruiting customers. Furthermore, Lewis established and induced advertisements to be placed on an online classified ad service, which is often used to market sexual services in exchange for money. Lewis received phone calls, text messages, and social media communications enquiring about, scheduling, and organizing prostitution dates with his co-conspirator and the victim using this online ad service.
Lewis arranged for the victim’s sexually explicit images to be used in the advertisements. Gee and Lewis also administered illegal and mood-altering drugs to the victim, including marijuana, in order to numb her senses, control her conduct, and/or persuade her to engage in commercial sex acts. On June 24, 2021, law enforcement officers located the victim in a hotel in Terrytown, Louisiana.

Lewis pleaded guilty in November 2022 to his role in the victim’s trafficking and is expected to be sentenced on June 14, 2023. Gee faces up to five (5) years in prison, a $250,000.00 assessment fee, up to three (3) years of supervised release following imprisonment, and a $100 special assessment fee. Gee could possibly be forced to register as a sex offender and pay reparations to the victim. Gee’s sentence is set for June 14, 2023, at 10:30 a.m. before Judge Vance.

This case was filed as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide campaign initiated by the Department of Justice in May 2006 to tackle the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Project Safe Childhood, led by the United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, marshals federal, state, and local resources to find, apprehend and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, as well as to identify and rescue victims. To learn more about Project Safe Childhood, go to www.usdoj.gov/psc. For additional information on internet safety education, go to www.usdoj.gov/psc and select the “resources” option.

In this case, U.S. Attorney Evans lauded the work of the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Jefferson Parish Sheriff’s Office. The prosecution is led by Assistant United States Attorney Jordan Ginsburg, Chief of the Public Integrity and Monetary Penalties and Recovery Section.

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