U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of New York Breon Peace indicted two Long Island men accused of operating coercive national sex trafficking businesses.
Photo: Andrew Harnik/AP
The law has caught up with two Long Island men charged with operating separate national sex trafficking businesses, following the unsealing of indictments earlier this week.
Lamont Young, 41, also known as “Paper,” and Michail McKen, 35, also known as “Kells,” are both facing charges related to sex trafficking by force and interstate prostitution.
Young was arrested on Long Island and appeared before United States Magistrate Judge James M. Wicks after an 11-count indictment was unsealed, charging him with sex trafficking by force, sex trafficking of a minor, and interstate prostitution. He has been ordered detained pending trial.
On the other hand, McKen was arrested in Arizona after a six-count indictment charged him with similar offenses. He is expected to make his initial court appearance in Phoenix.
The indictments, announced jointly by United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York Breon Peace, FBI Assistant Director-in-Charge James Smith and Suffolk County Police Department Commissioner Rodney K. Harrison, outline the defendants’ alleged coercive and violent actions forcing victims into commercial sex work.
Young, from 2011 to at least 2021, allegedly lured victims online, promising financial stability before resorting to violence, fraud, and coercion to force them into prostitution. One of his victims was reported to be a minor.
McKen, from 2019 to 2022, is accused of using violence and threats to force multiple women into commercial sex acts. He often recruited victims in Virginia before moving them to various states for prostitution.
Both defendants, if convicted, face a mandatory minimum sentence of 15 years to life in prison. They are presumed innocent until proven guilty.
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