District Man Sentenced To 15 Years In Prison For Prostituting And Sexually Abusing 15-Year-Old Victim-Defendant Lured Teenager From Seattle To Work As Prostitute-

     WASHINGTON – Jason Whren, 33, of Washington, D.C., was sentenced today to 15 years in prison for sexually abusing and prostituting a 15-year-old girl, U.S. Attorney Ronald C. Machen Jr. announced.

     Whren pled guilty in March 2014, in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia, to charges of first-degree sexual abuse of a child and pandering of a minor. He was sentenced by the Honorable Lynn Leibovitz. Upon completion of his prison term, Whren must register for 10 years as a sex offender.

     According to the government’s evidence, Whren contacted the victim on Facebook and began to develop a relationship with her over the telephone and Internet.  After sending the victim numerous text messages that contained sexually explicit pictures of himself, Whren was able to entice the victim to travel from Seattle to Washington, D.C. in December 2012.

     Upon her arrival in Washington, D.C., Whren immediately engaged in intercourse and other sexual activities with the victim.  He then began prostituting the teenager, forcing her to walk the streets to find clients, as well as compelling her to respond to illicit Internet advertisements that he posted.  The activities took place between Dec. 1, 2012 and Dec. 5, 2012 in Northeast Washington. Whren’s crimes were ultimately discovered by undercover officers conducting an operation to locate child prostitutes in the District of Columbia.

     In announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Machen commended the work performed by those who investigated the case from the Metropolitan Police Department’s Narcotics and Special Investigation Division, Human Trafficking Unit.  He also praised those who handled the case for the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Paralegal Specialist D’Yvonne Key, and Assistant U.S. Attorneys Danny Nguyen, Mervin A. Bourne, Jr., and Ari Redbord, who investigated and prosecuted the matter.