MIAMI-DADE COUNTY, Fla. – A 31-year-old man was arrested on a warrant Thursday after Miami-Dade police said he brought a 17-year-old girl from Texas to South Florida to work as a prostitute.
According to his arrest warrant, the police department’s Human Trafficking Squad was working in the area of Northwest 70th Street and 27th Avenue, which is an area known for prostitution, on Feb. 21 when a sergeant spotted the teen leaning into the passenger-side window of a car and directing the driver to pull into a Motel X.
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Police said the teen was transported to the Homeland Security Investigations building for an interview, and it was discovered that she had been reported missing in Texas.
According to the warrant, the teen told detectives that she had traveled to Miami from Texas with her “pimp,” Javien Papillon, who she knew as “Houston,” and a female known to her as “Momma.”
She said Papillon would make her walk the streets and would tell her a minimum amount of money that she had to make each day, which ranged from $1,000 to $2,500.
According to the warrant, the victim claimed that Papillon would transport her to various locations throughout the county to engage in prostitution and also posted online prostitution advertisements with photos of her.
Papillon faces charges of human trafficking involving a victim under 18 and deriving support from the proceeds of prostitution.
As of Friday afternoon, he was being held at the Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center without bond.