A 34-year-old Lauderhill, Florida man and a 37-year-old Oakland Park, FL woman were denied bail at a hearing Wednesday for their charges of child sex trafficking. They allegedly ran a bordello called the Boom Boom Room that offered sex with four underage minors.
The couple was arrested May 14 by members of the FBI Minor Vice Task Force. The woman’s rented home was raided around 1 a.m. and 12 male customers were in the house guarded by an armed doorman. According to arrest reports, adult porn was playing on a big screen television and marijuana and alcohol were being served.
The woman lived in the house with other children including two infants. The victims, ages 14 to 17, evidently considered the woman to be their mother who fed them and collected their tips for dancing nude or topless for customers. Three of the victims were supposedly runaways.
The four girls told police that the man arrested insisted they have sex with him, knew they were underage and collected money paid to them for sex at the brothel that was open Tuesdays through Saturdays from 10 p.m. until 4 or 5 a.m.
Investigators allegedly found business cards for a party business with the couple’s names on them as well as cell phone numbers. Text messages advertising flat rates for drinks and a girl were supposedly found on the man’s phone.
To prove child sex trafficking charges, no evidence of force, fraud or coercion must be demonstrated in federal court. Under Florida state law, no child can consent to being sold into a commercial sex trade. Most child sex trafficking cases involves the exploitation of a minor, which means using or utilizing a child in an unjust manner for beneficial gain.
A child exploitation or sex trafficking offense can result in a prison sentence of a few years up to life in prison as well as registration as a sexual offender as well as other punishments. Child sex trafficking is a federal offense and could mean a federal agency is involved in your case. Federal agencies oftentimes have more resources to pursue child exploitation or sex trafficking cases, so an aggressive defense attorney is central to your case and outcome.
If you have been accused of child exploitation or sex trafficking of a minor anywhere in Florida’s communities, contact the Florida Sex Crimes Defense Lawyers online or call 866-608-5529.