Alleged prostitution house "boss" arrested, multiple houses found in West Palm Beach
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. (CBS12) — The alleged "boss" of a prostitution ring located through out West Palm Beach is finally behind bars.
According to West Palm Beach police, officers were made aware of multiple possible prostitution houses in October 2017. Investigators say they were contacted by a person who said she escaped and was a victim of human trafficking and prostitution.
According to the report, the first prostitution house is located at 722 Belvedere Road and the second house is located at 512 Independence Road.
According to the report, the victim said there were three woman working at the Independence Road location, one a 16-year-old girl.
The victim told officers she is still in contact with the girl, and every Sunday "they change the females in each house and that the females alternate between houses."
Officers say the victim told them they charge men $30 for 15 minutes, and a man recruits women from different countries by threatening to kill their families. The victim told investigators one of the main bosses is 30-year-old Domingo Diaz.
The victim told officers police have been to the homes before, but the bosses hid the evidence or the evidence had been disposed of. The bosses also reportedly told the girls to tell police that they are relatives or girlfriends.
Officers conducted surveillance from November 2017 until May 2018 at 722 Belvedere Road, 505 Independence Road, 3809 Miller Avenue, and 528 Pilgrim Road.
Below is a list of their findings:
722 Belvedere Road:
Police conducted three positive trash pulls from this location, and gathered nearly 20 small plastic bags full of used paper towels, condom wrappers, and used condoms. Each bag held about eight to ten used condoms inside. Officers say they saw nearly 125 potential male customers walk into the back door and stay no longer than 15-20 minutes. Domingo Diaz has been observed at this location.
3809 Miller Avenue:
One positive trash pull yielded three small plastic bags full of used paper towels, condom wrappers, and used condoms. Each bag consisted of five to ten used condoms. Police say nearly 50 potential male customers entered the front door and stayed no longer than 15-20 minutes. Police say a doorman, 41-year-old Bartolo Mazariegos-Chay was at this location along with a car registered to Diaz.
505 Independence Road:
Officers say this appears to be the home of "bosses and/or doorman" involved in the prostitution houses. In a trash pull, correspondence linked this home to the location at 722 Belvedere Road.
On May 9, 2018 officers located a man that entered the 722 Belvedere Road location. The man told officers he has been going to the prostitution houses for six years. Police say that man also identified 3809 Miller Ave. and 519 Independence Road as prostitution houses.
According to the arrest report, the man said that he is positive all the homes are run by the same people due to the fact that he was also referred to those locations if he did not like how a female looked.
On May 25, four search warrants were served at 722 Belvedere Road, 3809 Miller Avenue, 505 Independence Road, and 528 Pilgrim Road apt. B. On the same day, officers arrested Bartolo Mazariegos-Chay.
Police say Bartolo told officers he met a man named "Jaime" later identified as Diaz who gave him a job watching the home at 3809 Miller Ave. Mazariegos-Chay told police that he opens the door for clients coming in to see the working females, and is paid $50 a day by Diaz.
Inside the house on May 25, officers came into contact with a woman from Puerto Rico. She told officers she travels to West Palm Beach to work as a prostitute, and was approached by Diaz at Mojitos night club in January 2018. She says Diaz offered her a job working at the prostitution house and said she would make several thousand dollars a week. The woman told officers she agreed to work for Diaz, and he took her to the house located at 3809 Miller Avenue. She told investigators she worked there for one week and made $4,000.
Officers say that Diaz has been observed delivering sheets to the prostitution house at 722 Belvedere Road and cleaning the front door. Police also believe that Diaz collected all the money from the prostitution houses, and that he is in charge of the operation.
Diaz is charged with three counts of deriving support from proceeds of prostitution, three counts of soliciting another to commit prostitution, and three counts of maintaining a house of prostitution. On Wednesday Diaz made his first appearance in court in Palm Beach County and his bond is set at $36,000.
Mazariegos-Chay is charged with deriving support from proceeds of prostitution, and maintaining a house of prostitution.
33-year-old Edictor Rosman Perez Morales and 20-year-old Octavio Diaz were arrested in connection to the investigation as well.
