TRENTON
– Attorney General Paula T. Dow and
Criminal Justice Director Stephen J. Taylor
announced that a woman was sentenced to
prison today for acting as a boss over the
prostitutes in a human trafficking ring
in Jersey City in which women were induced
to use heroin and cocaine and were beaten
if they did not turn a daily quota of tricks.
According
to Director Taylor, Annie Cooper, a.k.a.
“China,” 41, of Jersey City,
was sentenced to six years in state prison
by Superior Court Judge Kevin G. Callahan
in Hudson County. She pleaded guilty on
July 28, 2009 to racketeering.
On
Wednesday, Judge Callahan sentenced the
leader of the ring, Allen Brown, a.k.a.
“Prince,” 48, of Jersey City,
to 18 years in state prison, including 10
years and 10 months of parole ineligibility.
Brown pleaded guilty to racketeering and
theft by extortion.
Anthony
Evans, 52, of Jersey City, was sentenced
today to three years in state prison on
a charge of third-degree promoting prostitution
for assisting Brown in the prostitution
ring.
Deputy
Attorney General Annmarie Taggart prosecuted
the case and represented the state at the
sentencing. The charges resulted from “Operation
Red Light,” an investigation by the
Division of Criminal Justice Gangs &
Organized Crime Bureau and the Jersey City
Police Department. Seven other defendants
have pleaded guilty in the case.
Brown
ran prostitution rings in Jersey City for
nearly two decades, coercing scores of women
to prostitute for him. He had residences
that served as “stables” in
a number of locations in the city, where
he would hold women, taking away their cell
phones and any form of identification. He
brought women from cities including Camden,
Atlantic City, Elizabeth, Newark and Philadelphia.
His last location was 18 Lyon Court in Jersey
City, an upscale condo development on Newark
Bay in the Society Hill section of the city.
The women forced to prostitute for Brown
were given heroin and cocaine so Brown could
control them and exploit their addiction.
In
pleading guilty, Cooper admitted that since
1990, she assisted Brown in his prostitution
enterprises by acting as boss, controlling
the women and enforcing the house rules
he set.
Cooper,
who was called “Mommy” by many
of the women, would discipline the women
for not bringing home the daily quota of
$500 to $1,000 they were required to make,
sometimes kicking them and beating them
with her fists and household objects. Cooper
handed out heroin and cocaine to the women
or withheld drugs if they did not meet demands.
The
investigation revealed that Evans was one
of three men who, as subordinates of Brown,
were responsible for transporting the women
to work as prostitutes, obtaining drugs
for the women, maintaining the household
and vehicles, and securing the women. The
other two men are Brown’s nephew,
Arthur Brown, 38, of Jersey City; and Jerome
Robinson, 31, of Newark. Those two men also
pleaded guilty to third-degree promoting
prostitution and are scheduled to be sentenced
by Judge Callahan on June 4.
Over
the years, Allen Brown made hundreds of
thousands of dollars, which he used to furnish
his home, purchase jewelry, buy vehicles,
and purchase drugs. The ring also included
people who laundered the criminal proceeds
through various transactions. Brown used
family members and friends to act as the
legitimate holder of vehicle titles, real
property leases, cash and other property
that he paid for with criminal proceeds.
They included his mother, Tecora P. Brown,
73, of Bayonne, his niece, Tecora L. Brown,
36, of Jersey City, and Marlo Taylor, 40,
of Newark.
Tecora
P. Brown pleaded guilty to third-degree
promoting prostitution, and Tecora L. Brown
pleaded guilty to third-degree money laundering.
The state will recommend that both women
receive sentences of probation. Marlo Taylor
pleaded guilty to third-degree money laundering,
and the state will recommend that she be
sentenced to 364 days in the county jail
as a condition of a term of probation. Tecora
P. Brown and Taylor are scheduled to be
sentenced by Judge Callahan on June 4, and
Tecora L. Brown is scheduled to be sentenced
on July 9.
The
investigation was conducted for the Division
of Criminal Justice by Detective Noelle
Holl, Deputy Attorney General Taggart, Supervising
Deputy Attorney General Lauren Scarpa Yfantis,
and the Gangs & Organized Crime Bureau
North Squad. They worked cooperatively with
the Jersey City Police Department. The investigation
was conducted for the Jersey City Police
Department by Capt. Gary Lallo and the Special
Investigation Unit. Detective Mike Kurinzi
of the Elizabeth Police Department provided
critical assistance.
Allen
Brown, Cooper and Evans were arrested on
Sept. 12, 2008, when detectives from the
Division of Criminal Justice and Jersey
City Police executed a search warrant at
18 Lyon Court. Arthur Brown was also charged
that day.
Director
Taylor noted that the Division of Criminal
Justice has established a toll-free Human
Trafficking Hotline 1-877-986-7534
for the public and law enforcement that
is open 24/7 to receive reports of suspected
human trafficking. All information received
through the hotline will remain confidential.
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