Houston Man Convicted and Sentenced to 26 Years in Prison for Trafficking Teen Girl

A 38-year-old Houston man has been sentenced to 26 years in prison for trafficking a minor, District Attorney Kim Ogg announced Tuesday.

“A man who preys on a teenage victim is a predator and deserves to go prison for decades,” Ogg said. “This victim was brave enough to help put her abuser in prison, and we are grateful to the jurors who helped get justice for this girl.”

A jury convicted and sentenced Akeem Olajuwon Winfield, 38, in a three-day trial last week of forcing a 15-year-old runaway to prostitute herself in 2018.

The teen had recently moved to Houston with her family and was staying in a motel in west Houston. There she met Winfield, who persuaded her to stay with him at a different motel.

When they arrived at his motel, he forced her to cover her face from view of any surveillance cameras because he knew she was not an adult.

He sexually assaulted the teen several times and then forced to her to take photos for online ads for prostitutes. He also forced her to watch another prostitute have sex with a customer to familiarize her with the process.

The older woman became angry and tried to leave Winfield’s room, so he began to assault her. Several people heard the altercation and called the authorities, so Winfield and the prostitute fled the motel to evade police. The teen was then recovered by the Houston Police Department.

During the trial, the victim testified against Winfield, and after he was convicted, she gave a victim impact statement.

Assistant District Attorney Steven Denman prosecuted the case in his role in the DA’s Human Trafficking and Child Exploitation Division with ADA Brianna Kibler.

“This defendant was a pimp, and the victim was a perfect victim for him to exploit,” Denman said. “These cases are important to our office, and individuals like this deserve to be prosecuted to the full extent of the law because they pose a grave threat to the community, especially our youngest citizens.”

Winfield must serve at least half of the sentence before he will be eligible for parole.