United States Attorney D. Michael Hurst, Jr.

Southern District of Mississippi

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACT: SHEILA WILBANKS
TUESDAY, MARCH 26, 2019 PHONE: (601) 965-4480
https://www.justice.gov/usao-sdms

Sex Trafficker of Minors Sentenced to 32 Years in Federal Prison

Criminal Used Gun, Drugs, Violence to Force Minors to Have Sex in Exchange for Money

Jackson, Miss. – Willie Charles Blackmon, Jr., 37, of Jackson, was sentenced today by
U.S. District Judge Carlton W. Reeves to serve 384 months in federal prison, followed by a
lifetime of supervised release, for sex trafficking of minors, announced United States Attorney
Mike Hurst and Federal Bureau of Investigation Special Agent in Charge Christopher Freeze.
Blackmon was also ordered to pay a $5,000 fine and register as a sex offender for life.

“Harming, threatening and drugging children to do unspeakable things for money will be
swiftly prosecuted by this office and harshly punished in this district. The men and women in
law enforcement, as well as our prosecutors and support staff, are to be commended for bringing
justice to these victims and accountability to this defendant. I would ask the public to remain
vigilant as to these crimes and to promptly report any suspicious activities to law enforcement so
that other children never become victims of such heinous acts in the future,” said U.S. Attorney
Mike Hurst.

"Exploitation of a child for any reason is despicable and has no place in our
communities," said FBI Special Agent in Charge Freeze. "The FBI's Child Explotation Task
Force will continue to actively pursue anyone who deprives the community of the innocence of
children, and fight for justice for their victims."

After a four-day trial in U.S. District Court in Jackson, Blackmon was found guilty on
November 30, 2018, of two counts of sex trafficking minors and two counts of promoting a
prostitution business.

In July 2014, an investigation began into a prostitution ring in the Jackson area led by
Willie Charles Blackmon, Jr. The investigation revealed that Blackmon purchased a runaway
minor for $500 and recruited other runaway minors for prostitution. He rented rooms at local
hotels in Jackson and Vicksburg for days at a time, where the minors engaged in commercial sex
acts with men for money. Blackmon kept most, if not all, of the money earned by the minors
from the sex acts. The evidence showed that Blackmon physically harmed the minors, and would
threaten them by holding a gun to their heads if they did not perform or if they disrespected him.
He also provided drugs to the minors.

The Jackson FBI, Mississippi Attorney General’s Office, FBI New Orleans Violent
Crimes Against Children Task Force, Clinton Police Department and Ouachita Parish Sheriff’s
Office investigated the prostitution ring which spread throughout Mississippi, Louisiana, Florida
and Arkansas. Assistant United States Attorneys Glenda R. Haynes and Keith French prosecuted
the case.

The case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat
the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006 by the
Department of Justice. Led by U.S. Attorneys' Offices and the Criminal Division's Child
Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and
local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the
Internet as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe
Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.