Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division
Sentences conclude case against group that trafficked seven individuals, including two minors
Five defendants were sentenced today for a total of nearly 120 years in prison for their participation in a violent sex trafficking ring led by Kimani Jones, 32, also known as Statik. Jones was sentenced to 54 years in prison, and his father Tremayne Lambert, 50, also known as Bayrock, both of Montgomery, Alabama, was sentenced to 30 years in prison. Jones and Lambert were previously convicted of multiple charges of sex trafficking following a 5-day trial in October 2025. The court also ordered the defendants to pay $1,010,926.50 and $510,850 in restitution respectively to the victims.
Three additional co-defendants, who previously pleaded guilty in connection with this case, were also sentenced for their respective roles in the sex trafficking ring. Joseph Keon Bowe, 39, of Notasulga, Alabama, was sentenced to 235 months in prison and ordered to pay $3,200 in restitution. Daryle Gardner, 32, of Marbury, Alabama, was sentenced to 195 months in prison and ordered to pay $5,000 in restitution. Aleecia Scott, 30, of Dothan, Alabama, was sentenced to 36 months of probation and ordered to pay $1,000 in restitution.
“Today’s lengthy sentences reflect the heinous and depraved conduct of the defendants, who abused numerous women and girls for years,” said Assistant Attorney General A. Tysen Duva of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division. “The Department of Justice is committed to rooting out sex trafficking in the United States, seeking lengthy sentences for perpetrators and obtaining restitution for survivors so they can rebuild their lives. I thank the prosecutors and law enforcement who tirelessly pursued what was right and brought this case to a just conclusion.”
“These defendants preyed on vulnerable individuals and subjected them to exploitation for their own profit,” said Acting US. Attorney Kevin Davidson for the Middle District of Alabama. “We hope these sentences provide a measure of justice for the victims and send a clear message that this office, along with our law enforcement partners, will relentlessly pursue those who engage in human trafficking.”
Evidence presented during the trial showed that for five years, Jones organized and led an extensive commercial sex operation and forced women and girls to participate through violence and abuse. Jones rented hotel rooms where commercial sex acts occurred; provided food, clothing and drugs to the victims; constructed advertisements for commercial sex that he then posted online to solicit customers; communicated with potential customers regarding the sex acts and prices involved for them; dictated in which cities the victims would live and engage in commercial sex acts; and set rules that he required the victims to follow, which included, for example, the minimal amount of money that they needed to earn each day. Jones did not have a lawful job during the years he ran his sex trafficking operation, but instead, lived off the earnings of the sex trafficking and frequently flaunted the money that he made on social media.
To execute the operation, Jones used extensive violence against the victims and others in the victims’ presence. For instance, the jury heard evidence that on one occasion Jones grabbed a victim, who was a minor at the time, by the throat and dragged her across the floor for moving too slowly. Jones routinely struck women in the face, knocking out one individual’s teeth, breaking another’s jaw and striking one so hard she urinated on herself. Jones also sexually assaulted the victims to assert his dominance and control over them, threatened to hurt them, and in some instances, their family members, telling one victim that her son would not be able to play sports if his legs were broken. Jones, who has a prior federal conviction for being a felon in possession of a firearm, also intimidated the victims by possessing, brandishing and shooting firearms within the victims’ presence. He also facilitated addiction to drugs, such as heroin and methamphetamine, to compel their continued commercial sex acts for his financial benefit.
Co-defendant Lambert, the biological father of Jones who also has a prior federal conviction for being a felon in possession of a firearm, facilitated his son’s sex trafficking scheme by serving as a monitor of the victims and rule enforcer. Bowe, Gardner and Scott played various roles for Jones as enforcers, monitors, and drivers.
Jones was convicted at trial of two counts of sex trafficking of a minor by force, fraud and coercion; five counts of sex trafficking by force, fraud and coercion; one count of interstate transportation of a minor for purposes of prostitution; and one count of interstate transportation for purposes of prostitution. Lambert was convicted at trial of three counts of sex trafficking by force, fraud and coercion. Bowe and Gardner pleaded guilty to sex trafficking by force, fraud and coercion, and Scott pleaded guilty to misprision of a felony.
Homeland Security Investigations, the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency, the Alabama Attorney General’s Office, the Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office and the Montgomery Police Department investigated the case.
Trial Attorney Kate Alexander of the Criminal Division’s Human Rights and Special Prosecution Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Tara Ratz for the Middle District of Alabama prosecuted the case.
Anyone who has information about human trafficking should report that information to the National Human Trafficking Hotline toll-free at 1-888-373-7888, which is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week. For more information about human trafficking, please visit www.humantraffickinghotline.org. Information on the Justice Department’s efforts to combat human trafficking can be found at www.justice.gov/humantrafficking.