Three Texas soldiers are among nine men charged in a child prostitution ring.
What We Know:
- On Saturday, the Killeen Police Department (KPD) Special Victim’s Unit and Texas Department of Public Safety Human Trafficking Program arrested nine suspects, three who were part of the US military, for human trafficking and prostituting children.
- The suspects were caught making agreements for sexual acts through social media platforms with girls they believed to be 15 or 16-years-old in exchange for drugs, alcohol, and/or money. Two soldiers from Fort Hood, Spc. Anthony Xavier Antwon (25) and Pfc. Timmy Jones Jr. (30), were among the nine men, both charged with felony prostitution. Fort Sam Houston Staff Sgt. Pierre Jean (32) was arrested on suspicion of misdemeanor prostitution.
“The overall goal of this joint effort was to locate and arrest subjects who were willing to make overt efforts to pay minors to engage in sexual acts,” the KPD said.
- When the men arrived at the predetermined location to meet with the teen, they were immediately arrested. From the two-day sting operation, the men (listed) are facing seven felony prostitution charges, two misdemeanor prostitution charges, and two guns were confiscated.
- This isn’t the first time that Fort Hood soldiers have made headlines. Recently, the Army Secretary Ryan McCarthy announced that members of an independent panel will conduct a climate review in Fort Hood at the end of this month. McCarthy said that the panel will investigate the “command climate of the installation,” to determine if there is a “sexual harassment-type toxic environment that exists”. Their focus is to review how the military base handled the disappearance of Pfc. Vanessa Guillen, 20, and the toxic climate surrounding several other soldiers’ disappearances.
- Guillen vanished from the military base on April 22nd after telling her family that she was being sexually harassed by fellow soldiers on base. Two months after her disappearance made national headlines, her dismembered remains were found buried a few miles outside of Fort Hood. Reports confirmed she was bludgeoned to death on the base by another soldier, who committed suicide the morning he was being arrested.
- Another Fort Hood soldier, Pvt. Gregory Scott Morales, 24, was designated as a ‘deserter’ by the military when he went missing in August 2019. On June 19th, when the search party was looking for Guillen, his body was found. The Army Criminal Investigation Division said they suspect foul play in Morales’ death and are offering a $25,000 reward to anyone with information related to his disappearance.
- Back in 2015, Fort Hood Sgt. 1st Class Gregory McQueen plead guilty to more than a dozen military charges for running a prostitution ring where female soldiers were being pimped out to higher-ranking military officers. In March, 6 soldiers were arrested in a two-day operation organized by the Temple Police Department and Bell County Sheriff’s Department.
If you or someone you know is a victim of human trafficking, please call the National Human Trafficking Hotline by calling 1 (888) 373-7888, texting HELP or INFO to 233733, or visiting humantraffickinghotline.org.
Below is a list of the men charged:
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- Anthony Xavier Antwon, 25, of Fort Hood, Felony Prostitution under 18
- Javier Perez, 40, of Austin, Felony Prostitution under 18
- Brian Harley Flynn, 21, of Temple, Felony Prostitution under 18
- Brandon Anthony Lee, 25, of Killeen, Felony Prostitution under 18
- Dustin Edward Johnson, 42, of Lott, Felony Prostitution under 18
- Timmy Jones Jr., 30, of Fort Hood, Felony Prostitution under 18
- Shaun Paul Moore, 39, of Kempner, Felony Prostitution under 18
- Rakeem Jamal Nelson, 28, of Killeen, Class A Prostitution
- Pierre Jean, 32, of Killeen, Class A Prostitution
