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Violent NJ Human Trafficking Rings Dismantled Where Women, Teens Were Forced Into Sex: AG
Seven people have been arrested in the dismantling two human trafficking rings, one in North Jersey and one in South Jersey, authorities said.
The rings were based in Essex County and Cumberland County, state Attorney General Matthew Platkin said at a news conference on Tuesday, Dec. 3.
Khailah Meekins, 21 and Donte Barkley, 28, both Newark residents, trafficked two 15-year-olds and a 13-year-old in Essex County, Platkin said. Meekins and Barkley arranged sexual encounters for the girls through mobile apps that included online ads featuring nude photos of the minors. The girls would be…
Prostitution Bust At Motels, Massage Parlors Nets 18 Arrests, $22K: Passaic Sheriff
Eighteen people were arrested and more than $22,000 was seized in a widespread prostitution bust across Passaic County, authorities said.
Acting on citizen complains, multiple divisions of the Passaic County Sheriff’s Office conducted a quality of life operation on July 23 and 24, Acting Sheriff Gary Giardina said.
The detail targeted massage parlors and hotels across Passaic County, and found that the establishments were collecting illegal profits through prostitution related activities, Giardina said. The total number seized was $22,206.
During the detail, detectives working i…
Undercover Bust: NJ Man Among 5 Seeking Sex With Teens In PA, DA Says
Five people seeking sex with teens have been arrested in an undercover Berks County sting, authorities said.
All five individuals responded to an ad, posted on Monday, Jan. 19 by detectives, offering sex with 14- and 15-year-old juveniles at various locations in Berks County, the county district attorney's office announced.
The individuals agreed to meet up and have sex with the "teens," but instead were met by detectives and promptly arrested, District Attorney John T. Adams said.
The following arrests were made, according to Adams:
Richard Keene, 70, of Reading, charged with Traff…
Jurors Convict Elizabeth Man Who Lured Out-Of-State Escorts To NJ, Then Raped And Beat Them
Federal jurors in Newark convicted an Elizabeth man of luring out-of-state escorts to New Jersey for sex with false promises of paying them tens of thousands of dollars, authorities said.
Jose Torres, 45, refused to pay those who accepted the offer and often raped and beat any who pressed him for the money, according to an indictment that led to his conviction on Wednesday, Oct. 11, following a six-day trial.
Jurors in federal court in Newark found Torres guilty of four counts of persuading, inducing, and enticing women to travel in interstate commerce to engage in prostitution, U…
Hooked: 16 Busted, $35K Seized In Passaic Sheriff’s Countywide Prostitution Raids
Sixteen arrests were made and $35,840 in alleged profits seized by Passaic County sheriff's detectives during a two-day series of prostitution raids at massage parlors and hotels countywide, authorities said.
Key “pay-to-play” locations for illegal sex were pinpointed in Clifton, Paterson, Passaic, Wayne, and Woodland Park, Passaic County Sheriff Richard Berdnik said.
Nearly all were chosen for the quality-of-life operations following citizens’ complaints, the sheriff said.
Various units from his department supplied the detectives, Berdnik said.
These included his Bureau of Narcotics, Int…
Rapes, Beatings, Brandings: Married Paterson Sex Traffickers Who 'Defied Humanity' Go To Prison
A married Passaic County couple who operated a sex trafficking ring that raped, beat and branded women with the husband's name while he was in prison have been sentenced for their crimes, authorities announced.
Enna Gonzalez, 58, was sentenced to a plea-bargained four years in federal prison last Thursday, July 6, by U.S. District Judge Madeline Cox Arleo in Newark for crimes that one federal official said “defy humanity.”
Her husband, Jean “Poison” Noriega, 52, also took a deal from the government and was sentenced last month to 20 years in prison in exchange for a guilty plea, U.S. Attorn…
NJ Go-Go Bar Workers Busted For Prostitution, Selling Coke To Guests — Again: Police
An undercover bust led to even more prostitution and drug arrests at a popular North Jersey go-go bar nearly a year after a similar investigation, authorities announced.
Undercover police officers were offered sexual favors in exchange for money at AJ's Go-Go Bar in on Secaucus Road in Secaucus, Police Chief Dennis Miller said in announcing the latest bust.
Yuri Duran, 34, of Newark; Lara Murad, 44, of Jersey City; and Isabella Molina-Morales, 30, of Elizabeth; were all charged with engaging in prostitution. Murad was also found with cocaine, and was charged with a drug offense. Duran was a…
Warren County Man, 63, Met Up For Sex With Undercover Cop Posing As Teen Girl: Prosecutor
A 63-year-old man from Warren County is facing numerous charges after investigators caught him meeting up for sex with an undercover cop he thought was a 14-year-old girl, authorities said.
Paul Tedeschi, of Lee Avenue in Alpha, was charged with second-degree attempted luring, second-degree sexual assault, attempted child endangerment, and promoting prostitution, Warren County Prosecutor James L. Pfeiffer said in a release on Friday, Sept. 2.
Police in Phillipsburg learned from a source on Sunday, Aug. 21 that Tedeschi was looking for an underage girl to have sex with, Pfeiffer said.
A fol…
Pimp, Prostitutes Busted In Hudson Hotel Sting: Police Chief
A pimp and three prostitutes were busted in an undercover hotel operation in Secaucus, the town's police chief said.
"The sheer volume of hotels — we have between 15-18 — attracts prostitution in Secaucus," Police Chief Dennis Miller said. "Unfortunately, it's the underlying crime that leads to other crimes like robbery, drug deals and sexual assaults.
Vanessa Garrido, 27, of Union City, and Zulay Guerrero, 39, of Queens were charged with engaging in and promoting prostitution, the chief said.
In 2018, Guerrero was out on bail when she and then-36-year-old Terrance…
