Q&A of the Day – No human trafficking at the Orchids Day Spa in Jupiter or no human trafficking charges? Part 1
Each day I’ll feature a listener question that’s been submitted by one of these methods.
Email: brianmudd@iheartmedia.com
Twitter: @brianmuddradio
Facebook: Brian Mudd https://www.facebook.com/brian.mudd1
Today’s question…
Brian: Very rarely do I disagree with your positions. But I take great issue with your position on the Robert Kraft matter. On Friday you emphasized "human trafficking" was involved. Yet there was no proof of this allegation, as later in the day was emphasized by the Judge hearing the motion to suppress the videos. I took issue with your comments before the Judge commented.
I think that you were very derelict in your presumption of human trafficking at the spa was involved. This is an ongoing investigation by the Jupiter Police Department with no proof as of yet. You have no proof that the women who worked at the spa did not do so voluntarily. You are only assuming.
I continue to listen to your show in the mornings as you are the most informed radio host/commentator in the south Florida region. But on this one I think you owe an apology to your listeners.
Bottom Line: Thank you for your thoughtful note and concern. It's valid. And I’ll be glad to address it. I've watched what's been happening during this process and have been concerned right along that we might end up having a conversation similar to this one. It’s why I’ve been so passionate on this particular topic, from the time the news originally broke. Human trafficking is a crisis in South Florida, the United States and around the world. Recently I’ve shared the information that 22 Americans are lost per day on average to human trafficking along with 44 foreigners that are human trafficked into the US per day. Cases like this one represent one of the best opportunities to shed light on the extent of the human trafficking crisis – so I’ve taken to the opportunity to do so. You’re correct that on Friday prosecutors conceded that they wouldn’t be pursuing human trafficking and instead would pursue prostitution and related charges (for all involved – the operators, workers and patrons such as Robert Kraft).
If that’s all there was to this story, I’d agree that an apology would be in order. But it’s not. Here’s the definition of human trafficking according to the Department of Homeland Security:
Human trafficking is modern-day slavery and involves the use of force, fraud, or coercion to obtain some type of labor or commercial sex act.
Let’s get back to the premise of these women working at the Orchids of Asia Day Spa. Who were they and where did they come from?
All of the women working at the spa were Asian, predominantly Chinese, and had been brought into the US. Once the women arrived in the US, they were picked up at the airport by those associated with operating the spas (remember the Orchids Day Spa was related to a wider bust with an investigation that began in Martin County). According to investigators the women’s passports and other personal effects were detained by the operators of the spas and all transportation was provided by them.
In some instances, housing had been arranged for by the operators, in others it’s believed that the women would live at spas for weeks. It was noted in the investigation that several women would enter a spa but not be seen exiting for weeks at a time. That takes us to what happened on Friday in court. I’ll address it in part two.
Here's a link to that story: https://ihr.fm/2Pa0kve