Notorious Ottawa man charged in human trafficking case spanning several years
Posted June 22, 2023 5:17 pm.
Last Updated June 22, 2023 5:21 pm.
An Ottawa man at the centre of past human trafficking cases was charged in a similar investigation after Peel Regional Police determined that a female victim was promised a job in the music industry and was exploited in the sex trade.
Police said it worked with the Royal Canadian Mounted Police and commenced an investigation in November 2021.
It’s alleged that in May 2002, a woman was convinced to leave her home in Halifax, N.S., and move to Peel Region to pursue a career in the music industry.
Peel police said that once she arrived in Ontario, the woman was exploited, and the accused had control over aspects of her life while profiting financially over many months. The victim eventually returned home to Nova Scotia.
On June 16, 2023, Peel police received word that the suspect was in custody at an Ottawa Detention Centre for several offences relating to an arrest in 2019, when Juteah Downey of Ottawa, also known as “Lord Downey,” was charged with assault, sexual assault, three counts of human trafficking and other prostitution-related charges.
According to the CBC, in February 2023, an Ontario Superior Court Justice found Downey guilty of human trafficking and gaining a material benefit from it, procuring, advertising and benefiting from sexual services and assault.
Peel police said Downey faces additional charges, including procuring a person to become a prostitute, uttering threats to cause death or bodily harm and exercising control over a person to aid them in engaging in prostitution.
Investigators said Downey was released on conditions to appear in court on June 26, 2023.
