Human Trafficking Unit's First Trial Lands 2 In Prison For Up To 30 Years: Carr

COBB COUNTY, GA — Two people took a 16-year-old girl to a Cobb County hotel and tried to force her to perform sex acts on another man — who turned out to be an undercover police officer. Now they'll spend between 20 and 30 years in prison.

Georgia Attorney General Chris Carr's Human Trafficking Prosecution Unit — established in 2019 — obtained lengthy prison sentences Friday for the two people, who were found guilty of harboring, providing and/or transporting a person under the age of 18 for sexual servitude. Keron Hamilton and Meyetta King-Brown were convicted on two counts each Sept. 24.

On Oct. 12, 2017, Hamilton and King-Brown took the 16-year-old girl to a hotel on Interstate Parkway North in Cobb County. They arranged for her to perform sex acts with a man who they were communicating with over an online chat app, according to the AG's office — but that man was an undercover officer working as part of an operation between the Cobb County Police Department and the FBI's MATCH Task Force.

Hamilton and King-Brown, who were found at a nearby gas station, told police they were "only giving the minor a ride and had no knowledge of her activities that night," a news release said.

Both people were convicted on charges of harboring and providing a person under the age of 18 for sexual servitude, and transporting a person under the age of 18 for sexual servitude. Hamilton was sentenced to 30 years in prison, while King-Brown was sentenced to 20 years.

“I am pleased with the sentences handed down in this historic case, but we will not stop here,” Carr said. “I stated when the Human Trafficking Unit was starting that we will work every single day with all of our law enforcement partners to protect our state’s most vulnerable and put buyers and traffickers behind bars. This is justice for the victims, a great result for Georgia and our Human Trafficking Unit."

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