Woman Who Put 14-Year-Old to Work as Prostitute Sentenced

A woman who lured a 14-year-old Perris girl into a life of prostitution -- from which only the defendant and her boyfriend benefited financially -- was sentenced this week to 12 1/2 years in federal prison.

Nekeyia Necole Weatherspoon, 22, of Perris pleaded guilty in May to conspiracy to engage in sex trafficking of a child. Under the plea deal, in exchange for the defendant’s admission, the U.S. Attorney’s Office dropped five other trafficking-related felony charges.

U.S. District Judge Virginia Phillips imposed the sentence specified under the terms of the plea agreement.

“These cases are a priority for our office,” Assistant U.S. Attorney Thomas Stout told City News Service. “Any crime against a child is deeply troubling. With something of this nature, we believe the sentence was just.”

In July, Weatherspoon’s boyfriend, 24-year-old Kawaum Marquez Scott of Quail Valley admitted two counts of sex trafficking of a minor. He was sentenced to 17 years behind bars.

The defendants were arrested in November by FBI agents following a months-long investigation.

According to an arrest warrant affidavit filed by FBI Agent Jeffrey Stiff, the victim, whose name was not released, lived with her mother in a converted garage adjacent to Weatherspoon’s house in the 18200 block of Haines Street in Perris.

Stiff said the teenager became close to Weatherspoon, also known as “Keey Bee,” who told the girl she could make money by going on “dates” with random men.

The defendant arranged the girl’s first encounter with a Woodland Hills man. When the victim initially refused to perform the requested sex act, Weatherspoon threatened to abandon her in Los Angeles County, at which point the child complied, according to the affidavit.

A couple of weeks later, Scott and Weatherspoon took her to a motel on Florida Avenue in Hemet, where for three days she performed a variety of sex acts with unknown men in exchange for $100 payments -- all of which Scott and Weatherspoon collected.

According to Stiff, Weatherspoon arranged a string of “car dates,” during which the girl had intercourse with men

in restaurant parking lots in Hemet, Moreno Valley and Perris. The defendants directed the girl to tell each client that she was 18 years old and to identify herself as “Hunnie B,” according to the FBI.

The defendants took sexually provocative pictures of the youth and posted them to Internet sites to attract customers, according to the government.

The illicit activity continued through November and December 2012.

In January 2013, the girl finally broke down and disclosed to her mother what had been going on, prompting the woman to contact the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department.

— City News Service.

(Image via Shutterstock)