A pair of twin brothers from Dolton have been arrested and charged with multiple felonies, including trafficking in persons for forced labor services and involuntary sexual servitude of a minor, for forcing girls to have sex with strangers.
Myrelle Lockett and Tyrelle Lockett, both 17, have been trafficking teenage girls at various suburban hotels, selling sexual acts for money, according to a Cook Country Sheriff’s Office report released Tuesday.
The general manager of a Howard Johnson Inn said he remembers renting rooms to the Lockett brothers and was shocked when told that they were only 17 and were accused of renting rooms for prostitution.
"We check every ID," said Andy Desai, but admitted that some fake IDs "are better than the real ones."
"All I knew was they were using their laptops a lot. They wanted wireless service," he said.
Desai insisted his staff has worked hard to keep that element out of the hotel and has turned over all records of the boys' stay to police. Hotels aren't allowed to pry into what people are doing in their rooms, he said, but said that if he would have called authorities if he knew that prostitution was going on.
Sheriff’s detectives began the case when they responded to an ad on the classified website Backpage.com that offered sex for cash. The page also had a picture a girl later identified as one of the Locketts' victims.
When the undercover detectives met Tyrelle Lockett at the delegated hotel, there were signs of violence towards the girl. Officers arrested Tyrelle Lockette last Friday. A subsequent arrest of Myrelle Lockett was made over the weekend. Officers discovered another teenage girl being trafficked by Myrelle.
Investigators have determined that although rates as high as $300 were posted on the ads, the girls rarely saw any of the money. The girls have been submitted to Women’s Justice Services for counseling.
The Lockett brothers are in Cook County Jail with a bond set at $100,000. They are set to appear in court June 14.
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