El Cajon Man Convicted Of Attempted Sex Trafficking Of Teen, Woman

SAN DIEGO, CA — An El Cajon man was convicted last week of attempting to recruit a 14-year-old girl into prostitution, as well as recruiting a 22-year-old woman to work as a prostitute for him in National City.

Steven Terrell Lewis, 39, drove up to the girl in April of last year while she was walking to a friend's home in El Cajon and forcibly grabbed her cellphone in order to get her phone number, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office.

Prosecutors say he then began texting her and sent her a sexually explicit picture while identifying himself as "Pimpin." He tried to convince her to work for him as a prostitute, but the girl instead told a coach at her high school and police were notified.

One week later, prosecutors say he contacted a 22-year-old woman through a personals website and directed her to work as a prostitute in National City. However, she was picked up by undercover National City police officers who posed as sex buyers.

The U.S. Attorney's Office said the woman was able to leave prostitution, but Lewis continued sending her threatening messages in order to get her to continue working for him.

Those incidents are not believed to be the only times Lewis has attempted to solicit victims into prostitution. Prosecutors cited a picture found on Lewis' cellphone of a handwritten note that read "If I find out one more time that this car is following my daughter down Graves Ave we will have a problem. I suggest you f----- chill."

The U.S. Attorney's Office said Lewis was known to drive a white, four- door 1996 Oldsmobile with California license plate number 3TIF671 and a brown or beige four-door 1986 Chevrolet with California license plate number 1REC517.

Anyone who believes they or someone they know had an encounter with Lewis, or knows the author of the note, was asked to call the San Diego Human Trafficking Task Force at 1-888-373-7888 or text 233733.

— City News Service