A Silver Spring, Md., man pleaded guilty to two counts of sex trafficking of a minor, the United State's Attorney's Office of the District of Maryland said.
According to his plea, Roland Chick Akum, 25, transported a 15-year-old girl and a 17-year-old girl to a motel in College Park, Md., to engage in commercial sex acts. Akum advertised the girls on Backpage, a now defunct website that was used to market the sex trade, keeping a portion of the money they earned while engaging in commercial sex.
On July 7, 2017, the 15-year-old left the hotel and contacted police. The 17-year-old continued to be pimped by Akum until he was arrested on Aug. 10, 2017 in an operation targeting Backpage users. Akum was released released on bond the following day.
Akum, purchased a one way ticket from Dulles International Airport to his native country of Cameroon on Sept. 30, 2017. He was then arrested again on Oct. 3, 2017 and kept in custody.
As part of his plea, Akum will register as a sex offender where he lives, and where he works or is a student. He faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years in prison up to life.
