A San Diego man pleaded not guilty this week to charges of pimping a minor in Orange County.
Sheriff’s deputies stopped Kievon Lerell Key, 29, eight months ago, according to court records. He was staying at a hotel in Yorba Linda with the alleged victim, who had just turned 18, according to investigators.
Key told authorities that he is a dog breeder who hadn’t gotten a job since leaving prison; he said the $3,900 he had on him was from “stimulus checks,” according to court records.
Yet evidence on a cellphone he was using indicated he was pimping the alleged victim while she remained underage, according to court records.
Key was charged Sept. 15, but the warrant for his arrest wasn’t served until Saturday.
He faces multiple counts, including human trafficking of a victim under 18, pimping a minor over the age of 16 years and pandering with a minor over 16 years for purposes of prostitution.
Key was ordered to return to court for a pre-trial hearing on Jan. 10 in the Central Justice Center in Santa Ana.
– City News Service
