Prostitution ring busted
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By Carol Eisenberg and Lindsay Faber
STAFF WRITERS
January 28, 2005, 7:51 PM EST
A woman who police say ran a New York City escort service that hired underage runaway girls and netted $30 million over 10 years was expected to turn herself in to police, authorities said Friday.
Julie Moya, 29, of Freeport, was identified as the madam behind "Julie's of New York City," the focus of a yearlong police investigation. The business's Web site showed pictures of young women, scantily clad in lingerie, for hire by "the discerning, knowledgeable and successful gentleman." The service advertised rates ranging from $200 to $400 for a one-hour appointment.
Moya's attorney, Dan Ollen of Manhattan, denied Friday night that the service had hired underage girls.
"The notion that there were underage girls employed by Julie is the product of a vivid but twisted imagination," Ollen said. "It is a complete fabrication."
Thursday night, 25 people throughout the city and Nassau County were arrested. Fifteen were prostitutes; others were clients, including a lawyer and a teacher, and security workers employed by Julie's.
They were awaiting arraignment late Friday or early Saturday in Manhattan Criminal Court on charges of prostitution, promoting prostitution, enterprise corruption and money laundering, police said.
Among those arrested was Thomas Nooter, 55, of Kips Bay, a defense attorney who in 2003 represented an Iraqi diplomat's son who was charged with spying for Saddam Hussein's secret police.
Police said they also found small amounts of narcotics and about $2,000 in cash in several locations.
Business records gave the firm's name as "Julie NYC Party Planner," with Moya as the owner and an address of 500 W. 44th St.
Authorities still were looking for some underage runaway girls believed to be associated with the service, which advertises "young, attractive, healthy and personable girls." One 15-year-old is known to the department, police said. At one point during the investigation, a female undercover member of the Manhattan South Vice Enforcement Division went in and applied for a job with the service and was told she would have to perform sex acts as part of the job, police said.
In the city Thursday, search warrants for prostitutes were executed at several locations. Two additional locations in Nassau County were targeted.
The service, which employed 25 prostitutes, generated $3 million per year over the past decade, police said. Payments were accepted in cash only.
More arrests are expected in the coming days, police said.
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