City hooker ring KOd
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Video from WNBC; Article from THE DAILY NEWS
Operated through web
BY ROBERT GEARTY and GREG B. SMITH
DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITERS
‘Emmanualla’ is allegedly one of hookers once ‘available in New York City’ through NY Elites before Immigration and Customs agents busted up the ring and charged its alleged ringleader.
A multimillion-dollar Manhattan-based prostitution ring used the Internet to snag customers and arrange “dates” with hundreds of supposed supermodels in 22 states, prosecutors charged yesterday.
NY Elites promised “stunning European knockouts” with names such as Vanessa, Roxy and Katrina – charging $500 to $1,500 per hour for sex in hotels from coast to coast, authorities say.
The federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency raided Elites’ E. 32nd St. headquarters and discovered records listing the names of more than 200 hookers, according to court papers.
At 6 a.m. yesterday, agents busted alleged ringleader Rady Abdel Salem Abbassy. But they missed his girlfriend and alleged partner, Elena Trochtchenkova, who remains a fugitive, prosecutors said.
The ring operated out of an eighth-floor suite off Fifth Ave. where “dispatchers” took calls from johns drawn via a Web site.
The site depicted numerous women who supposedly “appeared on the covers of many mainstream European magazines,” providing a résumé with every physical detail.
Yesterday it featured 5-foot-6, 116-pound Vanessa with the come-on: “Call and Reserve Vanessa today!” She was allegedly “available in New York City” from last week until Sunday.
“If you are in need of beautiful companionship and sharp intellect, check out the most sought after escorts in the New York area,” the Web site promised.
Three of the pricey call girls turned informants and told of being sent on two-week “tours” to other cities, according to affidavits by Immigration and Customs agent Theodore Psahos.
The escort service used Hotwire, an Internet travel agency, to book hotel rooms for customers. Records show the service booked rooms in 22 cities, including New York, Boston, Chicago and San Francisco. Hotwire officials, who are not accused of any wrongdoing, cooperated with the probe.
Immigration agents discovered $5.5 million in deposits into accounts linked to NY Elites, mostly from credit card payments, prosecutors alleged.
But investigators believe the ring netted much more money, noting that most customers paid with cash.
The ring was quite sophisticated, requiring all first-time users to provide detailed personal information to filter out potential law enforcement agents.
Only after callers were cleared could they request specific women and particular sex acts, prosecutors alleged. “Incomplete forms will not be accepted,” the site warned.
Call girls would collect payments upfront, and deliver cash or credit card receipts to the dispatchers, prosecutors said.
Yesterday, a spokesman for Immigration and Customs confirmed the arrests and said the agency would release more information today.
In Manhattan Federal Court, accused ringleader Abbassy was detained when prosecutor Benjamin Gruenstein alleged he was in the U.S. illegally after being deported to Egypt for a 1985 marijuana conviction.
Two women, Valerie Hairston and Nancy Khaja, alleged to be dispatchers, were released on $100,000 bond.
Originally published on April 12, 2005