Boston Man Sentenced to Over 10 Years in Prison for Attempting to Purchase Sex with Minor

Press Release

Defendant agreed to pay undercover law enforcement officer $100 to have sex with minor

BOSTON - A Boston man was sentenced today in federal court in Boston for attempting to pay for sex with a 14-year-old girl.

Dimitri Shawn McKenzie, 29, was sentenced by U.S. Senior District Court Judge William G. Young to 126 months in prison, to be followed by five years of supervised release. In June 2024, McKenzie was convicted following a three-day jury trial of one count of attempted sex trafficking of a child.

"The sad reality is that children are being sold for sex in our communities because of people like Dimitri McKenzie. These men fuel that commercial sex industry and drive demand. We are actively prosecuting the men and women who traffic adults and kids for profit, but in order to make a real dent in this pernicious conduct, we also have to go after demand - that is the people who are trolling the internet purchasing sex with little kids. I hope that every coward behind a keyboard who is thinking about engaging in the rape of the child under the auspices of a commercial transaction thinks twice - you may very well be talking to an undercover federal agent. Don't do it. If you do, you are looking at a minimum of ten years behind bars," said Acting United States Attorney Joshua S. Levy.

"It is deeply disturbing to know that people pay to sexually abuse children. McKenzie was ready and willing to pay to sexually assault a child. Thankfully, through our undercover operation, he instead found an HSI special agent and not a real child," said Special Agent in Charge Michael J. Krol for Homeland Security Investigations in New England. "This sentence reflects the seriousness of his crime and our commitment to protecting children from exploitation and abuse."

In November 2022, McKenzie responded to an online post purportedly advertising two minor girls - ages 12 and 14 years old - available to perform sex acts in exchange for money in the Boston area. The post was a fictitious advertisement by undercover law enforcement. In subsequent text communications with undercover law enforcement, McKenzie agreed to pay $100 to have sex with the fictitious 14-year-old at a hotel. Upon arriving at the hotel, McKenzie met with undercover law enforcement posing as the purported seller in the hotel parking lot, provided cash in exchange for 20 minutes with the fictitious minor and accepted a hotel room key. McKenzie was immediately taken into custody.

If you or someone you know may be impacted or experiencing commercial sex trafficking, please contact [email protected].

Acting U.S. Attorney Levy and HSI SAC Krol made the announcement today. Valuable assistance was provided by the Lexington, Waltham, Barnstable, Quincy and Cambridge Police Departments as well as the Massachusetts State Police and the Massachusetts Attorney General's Office. Assistant U.S. Attorney Torey B. Cummings of the Civil Rights & Human Trafficking Unit and Assistant U.S. Attorney David G. Tobin of the Major Crimes Unit prosecuted the case.

Updated October 10, 2024