By: McKenna Golat | Southfield Sun | Published February 24, 2026
SOUTHFIELD — An Inkster man and a Pennsylvania woman have been charged with multiple felonies including human trafficking after their arrest in Southfield on Feb. 21.
According to the Oakland County Sheriff’s Office, Jowuan Lawrence Shorter, 30, and Kylee Lynn Berry, 27, of Connelsville, Pennsylvania, were arraigned Feb. 23 on charges of human trafficking and accepting earnings of prostitution. The charges are 15-year and 20-year felonies, respectively.
Shorter and Berry each have a $50,000 bond. The 46th District Court did not list an attorney for either Shorter or Berry as of Feb. 24.
“Our collective anti-human trafficking efforts continue to grow with our strong partnerships across the area,” Oakland County Sheriff Michael Bouchard said in a prepared statement. “In this case, Southfield police were integral in their efforts, communication and teamwork. With this combined focus, people were identified and arrested on charges of human trafficking. This modern-day scourge must be rooted out and perpetrators held to account. I am proud of our task force’s efforts.”
According to law enforcement, Shorter and Berry were arrested at a Southfield hotel after a Detroit man contacted Southfield police to report that he had been robbed by two men while he was inside a hotel room. The Detroit man had, according to law enforcement, gone to the hotel to meet with a sex worker on the morning of Feb. 21.
The Sheriff’s Office Human Trafficking Prevention Task Force, with the assistance of the Southfield Police Department’s Tactical Crimes Suppression Unit, was contacted about a case of possible human trafficking. Search warrants were obtained for two rooms at the hotel.
Officers reportedly found suspected cocaine and fentanyl, as well as evidence supporting human trafficking. Shorter and Berry were arrested on the scene and investigators are currently seeking a third man who is connected to the case, according to the Sheriff’s Office.
Shorter and Berry are allegedly believed to be connected to crimes in Bloomfield Township, Canton and Romulus, the Sheriff’s Office said.
Anyone who has been a victim of human trafficking or knows someone who has is asked to call the human trafficking tip line at (248) 858-0411 or contact local police.