Houston man sentenced for sex trafficking 7th grader following HSI Houston, local partner investigation

HOUSTON — A Houston man was ordered Oct. 20 to spend more than two decades in prison for sex trafficking a 7th grader following a Human Trafficking Rescue Alliance investigation conducted by Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Houston and the Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office.

Juwan James Davis, a 28-year-old resident of Houston, was sentenced in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas to serve 25 years in federal prison to be followed by 15 years of supervised release upon completion of his prison term. He will also be ordered to register as a sex offender.

Davis pleaded guilty to the charges on March 2.

The investigation began in February 2018 after authorities suspected Davis had trafficked a13-year-old child for sex. The minor told authorities she met Davis on Snapchat and that he wanted her to have sex for money. Davis posted ads of her wearing lingerie on Backpage to advertise her for commercial sex. He then drove her to hotels and waited down the street until she finished engaging in commercial sex with the customers. Once finished, the victim would contact Davis, who would pick her up and take the money. The victim also reported that Davis supplied her with drugs and had her branded by taking her to get a tattoo with his initials.

Law enforcement officials obtained a search warrant for Davis’ phone and found communications between him and the victim discussing the girl engaging in commercial sex and the amounts to charge for these acts. The phone also contained several pictures of the victim, some of which were used in the Backpage ads. There were also pictures of the 7th grader with a tattoo of Davis’ initials on her buttocks.

At the hearing, the court heard additional information including how Davis tried to manipulate and control the minor victim four years later by contacting her from jail and attempting to get her to drop the charges.

Tragically, the minor victim passed away earlier this year at the age of 18.

Davis will remain in custody pending transfer to a U.S. Bureau of Prisons facility to be determined in the near future.

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Sherri Zack and Kim Leo prosecuted the case.

For more news and information on HSI’s efforts to aggressively investigate human trafficking in Southeast Texas follow us on X, formerly known as Twitter, @HSIHouston.

HSI is the principal investigative arm of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS), responsible for investigating transnational crime and threats, specifically those criminal organizations that exploit the global infrastructure through which international trade, travel, and finance move. HSI’s workforce of more than 8,700 employees consists of more than 6,000 special agents assigned to 237 cities throughout the United States, and 93 overseas locations in 56 countries. HSI’s international presence represents DHS’s largest investigative law enforcement presence abroad and one of the largest international footprints in U.S. law enforcement.

Established in 2004, the Human Trafficking Rescue Alliance is a collaboration of federal, state and local law enforcement agencies working together with area social service organizations to target human traffickers and provide recovery services to the victims of human trafficking. Since its inception, the Human Trafficking Rescue Alliance has been recognized as both a national and international model in identifying and assisting victims of human trafficking and prosecuting those engaged in trafficking offenses.