A federal grand jury returned indictments against the Topeka couple accused of forcing a teenager into prostitution.Reginald Newman (29) and Tiara Newman (21) have been charged with one count of conspiracy to commit sex trafficking of a minor and one count of sex trafficking of a minor.
According to U.S. Attorney Barry Grissom, the Topeka couple met the victim in March of this year and since then had conspired to engage her in prosititution.
The teenager voluntarily traveled with the Newman couple to Manhattan, where they planned for her to engage in commercial sex acts.
The indictment alleges Reginald Newman held a gun to the victim’s head and threatened to kill her if she did not participate in a commercial sex act with a customer. Newman also forcefully administered illegal narcotics to the teenage victim.
If convicted, Reginald and Tiara Newman face 15 years to life in federal prison.
Grissom thanks all agencies involved for their work in this investigation, including the Topeka Police Department, Homeland Security Investigations, the Riley County Police Department, the Junction City Police Department, the Kansas Department of Revenue, the Fort Riley Police Department, the Ottawa Police Department, the Shawnee County District Attorney’s Office, the Pottawatomie County Attorney, the Riley County Attorney and local human trafficking victim specialists.
