Michael Barrett Cason, Transporting a Minor for Prostitution, Missouri 2017

A California man has pleaded guilty to transporting a 16-year-old victim across state lines for prostitution, according to a federal indictment unsealed in Kansas City, Missouri.

Michael Barrett Cason, 38, of Murrieta, California, pleaded guilty to the charge of transporting a minor for prostitution, as outlined in the indictment dated Dec. 13, 2017.

According to the plea agreement, Kansas City, Missouri, police officers responded to a local hotel on Nov. 18, 2017, after receiving a request to conduct a wellness check for a missing 16-year-old from Texas. The officers then located the minor, who had posted her location on social media.

Upon arriving at the hotel, officers found Cason's co-defendant, Shelbi Katelyn Chaddick, 28, of Texas, in a Mercedes-Benz with the missing 16-year-old victim. Investigators discovered items consistent with prostitution in the hotel room, as well as text messages on the victim's locked cell phone asking when she would be available.

The victim stated to officers that she had been transported by Cason and Chaddick from Texas to Missouri to engage in prostitution and had engaged in prostitution with several individuals while in Kansas City. Investigators also located live Backpage and CallsEscort ads that utilized the child victim's cell phone number.

Chaddick previously pleaded guilty on July 10, 2019, to making false statements to law enforcement. Under the terms of the plea agreement, Cason is subject to a sentence of 10 years in federal prison without parole.

This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Teresa Moore. It was investigated by the FBI and the Kansas City, Mo., Police Department.

The case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc. For more information about Internet safety education, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc and click on the tab 'resources.'

Source: https://www.justice.gov/usao-wdmo/pr/california-man-pleads-guilty-transporting-minor-prostitution