Hyde Park Man Pleads Guilty to Transporting Woman to Engage in Prostitution

BOSTON—A Hyde Park male pleaded guilty today to transporting a woman from Massachusetts to New Jersey, Vermont, and Pennsylvania for the purpose of prostituting the woman.

Darrell B. Graham, a/k/a Diamond, 51, pleaded guilty to transporting a woman to engage in prostitution. In September 2012, Graham was indicted. Sentencing is scheduled for July 23, 2014.

At the change of plea hearing, the government stated that Graham promised the 19-year-old victim money and dreams of a better life. Instead, Graham took the victim’s identification documents, posted her picture on the Internet, instructed her to cut ties with her family and friends, and for the next two months prostituted the victim in hotel rooms located in Massachusetts and elsewhere. Graham never paid the victim and instead caused her to engage in prostitution by a coercive scheme that included placing the victim in fear and using violence and threats of violence. Specifically, Graham pleaded guilty to transporting the victim from Massachusetts to New Jersey on August 18, 2011, to Vermont on September 19, 2011, and to Pennsylvania on September 24, 2011.

The plea agreement, if accepted by the judge, calls for a sentence of 10 to 15 years in prison; three years of supervised release; and fines, restitution, and forfeiture in amounts to be determined at sentencing.

United States Attorney Carmen M. Ortiz and Vincent B. Lisi, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston Field Division, made the announcement today. The case is being prosecuted by Kristina E. Barclay and S. Theodore Merritt of Ortiz’s Civil Rights Enforcement Team.