Couple accused of prostituting 15-year-old Lacey girl plead not guilty

A couple accused of prostituting a teenage girl they met in Tacoma were booked into jail this week.

Desmond Wade Jr., 25, and Michkalin Fox, 24, are charged with first-degree human trafficking, promoting commercial sexual abuse of a minor, first-degree promoting prostitution and unlawful delivery of a controlled substance to a minor.

They were booked into jail Monday, and pleaded not guilty at arraignment Tuesday. Pierce County Court Commissioner Meagan M. Foley set Wade’s bail at $400,000, and Fox’s at $150,000.

Fox posted bail, and Wade was still in jail as of Thursday evening.

Their attorney’s were not immediately reachable for comment.

According to charging papers:

The 15-year-old girl ran away from her Lacey home in January 2014, and was introduced to Wade.

He and Fox locked the teen in a hotel room, took photos of her for Backpage.com, and convinced her to prostitute herself on the website.

They fed her about once a week, and got her hooked on methamphetamine.

She ran away about a month later, and later called Fox for help. Wade showed up and beat her, then left her with her friends.

This story was originally published March 10, 2016 at 6:43 PM with the headline "Couple accused of prostituting 15-year-old Lacey girl plead not guilty."