MIAMI-DADE, Fla. — Two North Texans have been arrested after traveling to Florida with a teen girl to solicit sex from clients, the Miami-Dade Police Department said.
Police said 32-year-old Xavier Latrell Smith, of Dallas, and 21-year-old Jayla Welch, of Mesquite, face multiple charges, including human trafficking and custody interference.
Investigators said that two months ago Welch was working and recruiting young girls for sex work in Dallas, when she met the 17-year-old victim in the case.
Welch’s boyfriend, Smith, was the one who organized and arranged meetings with potential customers for commercial sex, investigators explained.
In a news release, the Miami-Dade Police Department said detectives received a tip from the FBI that both Smith, Welch and the teen victim “may be in Miami-Dade County engaged in sex trafficking.”
During the investigation, the suspects and the teen victim were located in Northwest Miami-Dade County in an area, police said, is known for sex trafficking.
After conducting surveillance, investigators said Smith was seen exiting a room at the Budget Inn Motel and getting into a SUV with temporary Texas tags. Detectives then performed a traffic stop on the vehicle and Smith was taken into custody.
Around the same time, police said surveillance also caught Welch and the teen victim exiting a room at the same motel. Both were approached by undercover officers approached, and they were both detained and interviewed.
The investigation revealed the trio stopped in several cities while in en route to Miami, meeting with clients that paid for dates and sex with the teen victim, police said.
During their one week stay in Miami, police said the victim claimed to have made around $10,000 on dates that involved sex, which she shared with Smith and Welch.
Both Smith and Welch have been transported and booked into the Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center in Miami. At this time, there’s no information regarding them being extradited back to North Texas to face charges.
The Miami-Dade Police Department is asking any with information concerning this incident to contact Crime Stoppers at 305-471-TIPS (8477) or 866-471-8477. You can also visit www.crimestoppersmiami.com and select "give a tip".