NEW YORK — A New York man has pleaded guilty to federal charges that he transported one of the victims of a suspected Long Island serial killer across state lines for prostitution.
Akeem Cruz was with Megan Waterman of Maine the night she disappeared from a Long Island hotel in June 2010. He has been identified in some reports as her boyfriend. Waterman’s body was later found dumped along a remote beach parkway. Police since have found nine other bodies along the highway.
They suspect a serial killer but have not identified any suspects.
Cruz admitted Wednesday in federal court in Brooklyn that he transported women from Maine to New York so they could meet clients for sex.
Cruz faces up to four years in prison. No sentencing date has been set.
WOW 4 Years??? They must of meant 4 months, thats probably what he will get if the trials in Maine..
This is a Federal Case. He will be sentenced according to guidelines set forth by the US Sentencing Commission. Each crime starts of with a certain points value, things such as pleading guilty and not going to trial reduce the points value. Things like committing the crime more than once, prior criminal history and aggravating factors increase the points the crime has. Those points then determine the amount of sentence a defendant gets. It can determine if half the sentence is eligble to be served under house arrest or not in some cases. The judge must sentence the defendant according to the points assigned to his crime. If the judge does not it is called a downward departure and the judge must account for his decision in a report to the Attorney General of The United States.
Downward Departures are not common.
What.. the.. heck… They need to interrogate the daylights out of this guy. According to this article, he has some kind of connection with whoever killed and dumped 9 bodies across the country. I’m no detective, but I think this guy knows more than what he’s telling.
I agree with you. That’s probably why he is taking the 4 years cause hes getting off way easier than if he told the whole story.
He is not accussed of murdering anyone, or withholding material information. He was accussed of bringing a female over state lines to engage in sexual activity which is a federal crime. I agree his is a despicable person but being someones pimp does not mean that he knew every single person this woman was with.
He has no connection at all to the many other woman who were working as prostitutes and ended up being murdered.
Previous information stated that he was her boyfriend/pimp and that she would advertise on Craigslist and then meet clients that way. I dont believe he would know exactly who was meeting with the lady day to day. Police in Long Island have indicated that all the woman killed had been advertising on Craigslist. Other theories is that there is more than one killer of these women and that this area is being used as a dumping grounds by the killer or killers.
I feel sorry for her family, especially if they did not know what “career” she chose. But if you are gonna choose that lifestyle, you need to know the dangers and this is one of them. Very sad in today’s world women still believe this and/or stripping is a great career choice.
I don’t think any woman considers prostitution or stripping a “great career choice.” The job market is terrible, and everyone has to eat. Many women who go into these activities have small children whose father has deserted, and those children must eat.
This has ever been the case with female prostitutes.
Or women fall in love with bad men who lead them into having sex with strange men for money, and these pimps treat the women badly if they don’t comply. We read about what happens to these women in city newspapers.
I can think of no more odious and degrading way to spend one’s youth (for that’s all they have – older women are the throwaways of this society) than to pander to strange men’s sexual oddities while pretending to enjoy them.
One alternative for young women with children who cannot find jobs could be group homes where several women with young children share a house and responsibilities for its upkeep.
If they share child care, then those who find jobs could bring in money while the others take care of the children and do the cooking, etc. The group home inhabitants could take turns doing the work, and they could grow a garden to save money on food, etc.
The group home could be self-governed with light supervision (occasional unannounced visits). If the child care schedule permitted, these women could do some community services, like volunteering to help elders or helping pick up roadways or helping at nearby farms to learn to become farmers themselves – which would be a way out of poverty and a great way to raise their children, as well as get out of the sordid lives they’ve been leading.
Oh the path was deep and wide from footsteps leading
to our cabin and above the door there burned a scarlet
Lamp and late at night a hand would knock and there
would stand a stranger I’m the son of hickory hollars Tramp.
The corn was dry and the weeds were high when
daddy took to drinkin, him and Lucy Walker took
up and ran away momma cried a tear and then
she promised 14 children i swear you’ll never see
a hungry day.
when momma sacrificed her pride the neighbors started
talkin, but i was much too young to understand the
things they’d say, the thing that mattered most of all
was momma’s chicken dumplins and a goodnight kiss
before we went to bed.
When daddy left and destitution came upon our family
not one neighbor volunteered to lend a helpin hand
so let em gossip all They want she loved us and she
raised us the truth is standing here a full grown man.
last summer momma passed away and left the ones who
loved her, each and every one is more than grateful for
their birth, each Sunday she receives a fresh bouquet
of fourteen roses, and a card that reads the greatest
mom on earth.
“Son of Hickory Hollars Tramp”
by Merle Haggard