On Thursday afternoon the NYPD broke up a high-end prostitution and drug ring comprised of 18 Asian women from Manhattan, Brooklyn, Long Island, and Queens, looking to score big during the Super Bowl weekend. Attorney General Eric T. Schneiderman and NYPD Chief of Department Phillip Banks III says the suspects are charged with conspiracy, narcotics sales, promoting prostitution, and money laundering.
“Drug trafficking and prostitution are a scourge on communities across our state,”Attorney General Schneiderman said. “My office will continue to work with our partners in law enforcement on multi-agency investigations like this one to take down networks of criminals who exploit women and poison our communities for profit.”
The ring is said to have already generated millions and with the Super Bowl coming up in the metropolitan area, they were hoping for another big pay day. Investigators say most of their targets were wealthy out-of-town customers. Their means of promotion were through the internet and even on local public access channels. The group also caught the attention of Johns by sending texts to frequent customers claiming “new sexy & beautiful girls R in town waiting for you."
In a single night clients could be charged upward of $10,000 on their credit card depending on the hours they spent with the women and the amount of drugs they bought that night. Credit card bills would hide the fact clients were buying the ring’s “party pack,” which included cocaine and sex, and instead showed they purchased a hefty sum of basic goods for the night.
In recorded conversations by authorities, they found various code names for cocaine which included “party,” “jewelry,” “powder,” “make,” and “Soojaebi” – a Korean noodle and vegetable soup.
Once the money was made, the ring laundered it through front businesses such as clothing, wig, and beauty supply wholesalers. They also used a limousine service as a front.
Schneiderman says the bust was a part of a year-long investigation between the Attorney General’s Organized Crime Task Force and the New York City Police Department. The group was brought down before the big game by use of undercover investigators, physical and electronic surveillance, and reviews of business records.
[Source: Attorney General Eric T. Schneiderman]
Video Courtesy of Attorney General Schneiderman Official YouTube Page