SOUTH JERSEY (KYW Newsradio) — Eight people were arrested as police broke up an alleged sex trafficking ring in South Jersey. The state attorney general said the suspects held women against their will at brothels they operated.
Vilma Deleon Bracamonte and Maria Soledad Xec Chan, both of Trenton, face racketeering, human trafficking and organized crime charges, among other offenses, as the alleged ringleaders. Prosecutors said the pair oversaw the operation of five brothels in Trenton and Camden.
Some of the victims were brought to the country illegally and told they could work as cleaners or at restaurants. But according to New Jersey Attorney General Matt Platkin, they were forced to perform sex acts each day. Men would pay $50 for 15 and the victims would keep $25.
“We’re talking about human beings, women, being treated as property, barely distinguishable from a car service or renting an automobile,” Platkin said.
“As a cooperating witness told detectives, the women were not allowed to leave the houses where they were kept once they were there.”
According to Platkin, one of the women was told she couldn’t leave because she owed one of the defendants $35,000 for bringing her to the U.S. He said the suspects also threatened to hurt family members of the victims if they didn’t comply.
Santiago Miranda-Gomez, Francisco Macariosut, Abel Aguilera-Ronquillo, Julio Delgado-Belmeo, Flavio Navarrete-Reyes and Wilmer E. Pinargote-Chimbiligua were also charged with racketeering and human trafficking. Authorities said the six suspects managed day-to-day operations at each brothel, under Bracamonte and Chan.
If convicted, the defendants each face 10 to 20 years in prison for racketeering and 20 years to life for human trafficking.