últimas notícias

In The Arena

Don’t be shocked by the arrest of Robert Kraft. Sex businesses are often hiding in plain sight, and their customers are not who you think.

Robert Kraft, owner of the New England Patriots, was recently charged with two misdemeanors for allegedly soliciting prostitution at Orchids of Asia Day Spa in Jupiter, Florida. A spokesperson for Mr. Kraft categorically denied the accusations, but police Chief Daniel Kerr claimed to be in possession of video footage of Kraft receiving “paid acts” in the room.

Many expressed surprise at Kraft’s alleged transgression—after all, he’s a wealthy, powerful man who could probably figure out how to pay for sexual favors more surreptitiously and with higher-end providers, if that’s what he wanted. But nobody should have been shocked.

Story Continued Below

I wasn’t surprised because Kraft fits the profile: older, educated, affluent and looking for services with women who are unlikely to recognize him, much less speak about the alleged illicit services he received.

And what about the Orchids of Asia Day Spa? To the outside world, the alleged erotic massage parlor appears to provide only legitimate services, being located in the same shopping center as a Publix and Outback Steakhouse restaurant, Orchids of Asia advertised Swedish, Deep Tissue, Shiatsu, Thai, Hot Stone, Reflexology and Hawaiian Lomi-Lomi massages.

However, commercial sex businesses are typically hidden in plain sight.

According to RubMaps.com, a website used by commercial sex consumers to rank and review alleged erotic massage locations, Orchids of Asia Day Spa has been active since 2012. On the website, reviewers claimed to have paid for so-called “ass-play,” “handjobs,” and “breast-play” at the location. According to the commercial sex consumers, “full service”—a euphemism for sexual intercourse—was not provided.

Commercial sex consumers who reviewed Orchids of Asia Day Spa described it as being located in a “run-of-the-mill” strip mall. The men most frequently described the masseuses as being Chinese and aged between 30-40 years old. They alleged that masseuses would “tweak the nipples” of the consumers or tease them until they produced an erection, after which “extras” would be negotiated. On average, men claimed they paid $75 for the massage and an additional $40 tip in exchange for an erotic hand massage of their genitals.

Reviewers also claimed the Orchids of Asia Day Spa was formally known as Tokyo Spa & Massages, which had the same location and phone number, but simply changed in name. This is a common tactic used by erotic massage parlors. The location and phone number will stay constant, but the registered owner and name will change on paper—known as a straw man business, in order to stifle investigations by law enforcement.

On other commercial sex review websites, such as USASexGuide.nl, commercial sex consumers, who refer to themselves as “Mongers” and “Hobbyists,” were confused on how the police in Florida were able to obtain video of Kraft, if he actually did receive commercial sex services, as alleged. Some speculated the video actually came from the business owner’s security system as opposed to police, but one “Monger” floated the possibility that “one of the girls flipped on the owners. Police were made aware of a possible sex trafficking ‘victim’ in this establishment and they got a judge to sign off on the surveillance based on a ‘sex trafficking victim.’” This is certainly within the realm of possibility—but police haven’t confirmed it.

While most women involved in the commercial sex industry are not victims of sex trafficking, it is often difficult to discern the difference between the two. Erotic massage parlors, in particular, are locations at high risk of sex trafficking, as commercial sex providers are often recent immigrants who were defrauded into providing the illicit services upon arriving in the United States.

The Trump administration has made combating sex trafficking a priority, for example by signing the Abolish Human Trafficking Act, which strengthened programs supporting survivors and resources for combating modern slavery, and by signing the Frederick Douglass Trafficking Victims Prevention and Protection Reauthorization Act, which authorized $430 million to fight sex and labor trafficking. But it’s unclear how effective these efforts have been in actually combating this modern scourge. The commercial sex industry is hidden in plain sight, in shopping centers, nail salons and massage parlors that both women and men patronize across the country and evidence suggests that American laws haven’t been particularly effective in combating these clandestine crimes by preventing new crimes, protecting victims and prosecuting offenders.

Ultimately, whether or not Kraft is found guilty of soliciting prostitution, men like him will continue to fuel the demand for these services. The commercial sex industry is driven by people the public would least expect: They are our brothers, fathers, husbands, neighbors, teachers and—allegedly—even wealthy owners of major league sports teams. These men must understand that their commercial sex activity can fuel sex trafficking and learn what these victimizations involve. Victims can suffer from serious psychological and physical trauma, which can negatively affect them for years, decades or even a lifetime.

We’re never going to snuff out the exchange of money for sex between consenting adults—not for nothing is it described as “the world’s oldest profession.” However, we can fight sex trafficking by decriminalizing consensual commercial sexual activity (which isn’t the same as legalization). Police should be able to use discretion and offer lesser punishments, especially if a source is reporting a sex trafficking victimization. This would help identify more sex trafficking cases—and that’s the real battle before us.