CSEC2011
United States US
Richard Costanzo, 45, of Carter Lake, Iowa, was sentenced on November 4, 2011, to 96 months in prison by Chief United States District Judge Joseph F. Bataillon, in Omaha, Nebraska. Mr. Costanzo previously pled guilty to Conspiracy to commit various prostitution offenses during 1997 to 2009; three counts of Using a facility of interstate commerce to promote prostitution; one count of Transportation with intent to promote prostitution; and two counts of Money laundering. Following a hearing on October 12 and 13, 2011, Judge Bataillon had found that Mr. Costanzo knowingly caused a minor to engage in prostitution. Evidence presented at that hearing also indicated that Mr. Costanzo had operated his escort business for over 10 years. Mr. Costanzo also pled guilty to witness tampering in a related case. He received a sentence of 96 months for that conviction, to run concurrently. Richard Costanzo is the President of Dream Girls, Inc. a Nebraska corporation. Theresa Costanzo, (the sister of Richard Costanzo), Janna Wasko, (Richard Costanzo’s ex-wife), and Michael Wasko, (the husband of Janna Wasko), are all alleged in an April 2010 indictment to have worked at the business in various capacities. The indictment alleges that Dream Girls, Inc., advertised itself under many different names and held itself out as an escort service but was a front for prostitution. The indictment also alleges at least one of the escorts who worked at the business was under 18 years of age.
Sex Trafficking2010
United States US
Four individuals ran a sex trafficking business out of their home property in Omaha, Nebraska. Merrideth Crane-Horton was described in court records as the "mastermind." Her husband, Edwin Horton, handled the money, while Ramon Heredia, Horton's nephew, provided the muscle. Katherine Heredia worked as a prostitute. The trafficked girls involved were under the age of eighteen, one girl was only thirteen years of age. Two girls, the thirteen year old and a fifteen year old, managed to escape. Girls harbored at this Omaha residence were beaten and threatened to perform sexual acts for pay with their earnings going directly to their traffickers. One woman, now 20, told authorities that Crane-Horton and Ramon Heredia beat her to coerce her into prostitution and to keep her from talking to police. The woman said Crane-Horton would lock her inside a room without heat or lights to compel her to perform sex acts. Katherine Heredia was also working as a co-conspirator as well as a prostitute. She claims to have been subject to violent beatings to “keep [the other girls] in line”. A local expert on human trafficking said it's not uncommon for a victim like Katherine Heredia to become a co-conspirator. "It is very similar to a domestic violence situation," said a member of the Omaha Salvation Army's social services division. "It is somewhat like Stockholm syndrome. After a period of brainwashing and breaking,' you co-opt with your abuser ... and bring into the fold younger people. It is a distorted idea of love."
Sex Trafficking2008
United States US
Leonard Russell recruited two girls from Nebraska to engage in commercial sexual activity, including prostitution, and to perform at strip clubs. The two victims, ages 15 and 16, were runaways and were harbored by Russell. The victims testified that they met Russell in Omaha, Nebraska on August 20, 2007 after they ran away from a juvenile home located in Fremont, Nebraska. They were recruited to help at 19-year old prostitute, named Marcia Ryan. The victims were then transported to Davenport, Iowa, then Rockford, Illinois, and finally back to Denison, Iowa. They were forced to engage in prostitution and perform at strip clubs, one of which was Big Earl’s Key Club in Denison, Iowa. They were forced to give their earnings to Russell and Ryan to pay for their food, shelter, transportation, and clothes. One victim was with Russell for eight days, and the other for 10 days. Investigations showed that they had been advertised on the internet as prostitutes.