RICHMOND, Va. – Whitney Rachell Hayes, 20, and Rachael Michelle Masingene, 20, both of Charlotte, North Carolina, pleaded guilty today to conspiracy to transport an individual across state lines for purposes of prostitution. 

            Neil H. MacBride, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia; Jeffrey C. Mazanec, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Richmond Field Office; and D.A. Middleton, Chief of Police for the Henrico County Police Division, made the announcement after the plea was accepted by United States District Judge Henry E. Hudson

            Hayes and Masingene were arrested on July 2012 and charged in a criminal information on September 17, 2012 with conspiracy to transport an individual in interstate commerce for purposes of prostitution.  Both defendants face a maximum penalty of five years’ incarceration when they are sentenced on January 11, 2013.   

            In a statement of facts filed with their plea agreement, both Hayes and Masingene admit that in February or March 2012, while in Miami, Florida, they met the 13-year old victim and encouraged her to come with them to Charlotte, North Carolina, where they were living and working as prostitutes.  Hayes and Masingene, along with Korey Jermaine Reynolds, who was their pimp, transported the girl from Florida to Charlotte.  From March 2012 until May 2012, the juvenile lived in various hotels in the Charlotte area with Hayes and Masingene, and worked as a prostitute, providing the majority of her earnings to Reynolds.  In May, Reynolds, Hayes, Masingene and the juvenile came to Richmond to engage in prostitution, where they were discovered by Henrico Police and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.   

            Reynolds pled guilty to Transporting a Minor Across State Lines for Purposes of Prostitution on July 3, 2012, and faces a minimum sentence of ten years and a maximum sentence of life when he is sentenced on October 2, 2012. 

            This case was investigated by the Henrico County Division of Police and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.  Assistant United States Attorney Jamie L. Mickelson and Special Assistant United States Attorney Mike Feinmel of the Henrico Commonwealth’s Attorney’s Office are prosecuting the case on behalf of the United States.

A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the United States Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of Virginia at http://www.justice.gov/usao/vae.  Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia at http://www.vaed.uscourts.gov or on https://pcl.uscourts.gov.

 

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