Arizona man pleads guilty to bringing woman to New Mexico for sex work during cross-country trip

An Arizona man pleaded guilty Wednesday to bringing a woman across state lines to engage in sex work in New Mexico earlier this year.

Hakeeme Williams pleaded guilty to a federal charge of transporting a woman to engage in illegal sexual activities.

Williams faces up to 10 years in prison and will serve up to three years of supervised release once he’s out, according to a news release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office in the District of New Mexico.

Before pleading guilty, according to court records, Williams had been on pretrial release, living at a halfway house and working at a hardware store in Albuquerque.

Federal agents allege Williams took two women, Jane Doe 1 and Jane Doe 2, cross-country while the women did sex work in different states, according to a criminal complaint filed in U.S. District Court in New Mexico.

During a trip through Albuquerque, on June 17, Jane Doe 1 called 911 from the Laguna gas station after Williams beat her and accused her of “participating in an unauthorized act with a client,” the complaint states. Officers found both women and Williams at the gas station. Jane Doe 1 identified Williams as her “pimp,” while Jane Doe 2 said she worked “freelance.”

Jane Doe 1 told federal agents that she met Williams over Facebook months ago, and, since then they had traveled all over while she did sex work, from Phoenix to the East Coast, according to the complaint. At one point, the woman said, she left Williams, but he found her by posing as a customer and they resumed traveling together, this time being joined by Jane Doe 2.

Jane Doe 1 showed agents bank statements that she had given $23,000 to Williams over the past year, the complaint states. She also told agents he “frequently” hit her in the face when he was angry, such as when she forgot where she put his gun in their hotel room or when she would roll her eyes.