JOLIET, Ill. – A Joliet man was sentenced to 27 years in federal prison for sex trafficking and facilitating the sex trafficking of multiple women.
The Department of Justice said 29-year-old Kendall Guyton admitted in a plea agreement to recruiting three women to engage in commercial sex acts from 2017 to 2020. Guyton also admitted to advertising commercial sex acts online and arranged for the victims to meet people in various locations throughout the Chicago area.
Guyton also reportedly gave illicit drugs to his victims, including heroin or cocaine, and also beat his victims, forcing them to give into his demands.
At his sentencing hearing, the government presented evidence that Guyton facilitated the trafficking of at least five other victims, including a minor, by beating and sexually assaulting them, according to officials.
Guyton pleaded guilty last year to one count of sex trafficking by force, fraud and coercion. A judge imposed the 27-year sentence on Thursday during a hearing in federal court in Chicago.
Officials aid a co-defendant, 45-year-old Gregory Ingram of Richton Park, Illinois, also pleaded guilty to trafficking multiple victims, including a 14-year-old whom he invited to live in his home while he trafficked her. Ingram also used drugs and threats of harm to control the 14-year-old.
A judge sentenced Ingram to 20 years in federal prison.
“Defendant’s crimes were incredibly serious and had long-lasting impacts on his victims,” Assistant U.S. Attorneys Christine M. O’Neill and Prashant Kolluri said in the government’s sentencing memorandum in Guyton’s case. “Defendant knew these women were vulnerable and he preyed upon these vulnerabilities.”
Anyone who believes they are a victim of sexual exploitation is encouraged to call the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children by calling 1-800-843-5678 or by clicking here. The service is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week.