Men Plead Guilty To Child Sex Trafficking In Windsor Locks, EW

WINDSOR LOCKS-EAST WINDSOR, CT — Two East Hartford men have pleaded guilty to offenses relating to the sex trafficking of a minor that occurred in East Windsor and Windsor Locks, the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Connecticut announced.

In October 2019, Joel Lindsay (also known as "Joey Guapo"), 23, and Joseph Pina, 24, recruited, enticed and transported a female minor victim to engage in commercial sex acts, according to court documents and statements made in court.

On Oct. 17, 2019, Lindsay, Pina and a third individual took the victim to an East Windsor hotel, where they took photos of her, posted them on a website and "advertised her sexual services," the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Connecticut said in a news release.

Lindsay and Pina then arranged prostitution appointments for the victim. That night, she earned at least $100 from the appointments — all of which she gave to Lindsay, officials said.

On Oct. 18, the two men posted more advertisements on the same website and arranged more prostitution appointments for the minor victim, this time at a hotel in Windsor Locks, officials said.

"The following two days, Lindsay and Pina posted additional advertisements on the website and the minor victim saw prostitution customers each day," the news release said. "The victim again gave all of the money earned through these appointments to Lindsay."

An investigation also found that Linsday and Pina engaged in sexual activity with the victim despite knowing she was under the age of 18, officials said.

Lindsay pleaded guilty on Friday to one count of sex trafficking of a minor, which carries a mandatory minimum term of imprisonment of 10 years and a maximum term of imprisonment of life.

A citizen of Jamaica, he has been detained since his arrest on Aug. 20, 2020, and will be sentenced on Jan. 12, 2022.

Pina pleaded guilty on Oct. 6 to one count of conspiracy to commit sex trafficking of a minor, an offense that carries a maximum term of imprisonment of life.

He was released on a $100,000 bond and will be sentenced on Jan. 19, 2022.