Robert Kraft, the billionaire owner of the New England Patriots, faces charges of soliciting a prostitute after he was twice videotaped in a sex act at a shopping-centre massage parlour in Florida, police said Friday.
The 77-year-old Kraft denied any wrongdoing. The case comes amid a crackdown on sex trafficking from Palm Beach to Orlando in which police planted cameras in massage parlours.
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Kraft was not immediately arrested. Jupiter police said a warrant will be issued and his attorneys will be notified. They said details about the misdemeanour charges against the owner of the Super Bowl champion team will not be released until next week.
Hundreds of arrest warrants have been issued in recent days as a result of the six-month investigation, and more are expected. Ten spas have been closed, and several people have been taken into custody on sex trafficking charges.
Jupiter Police Chief Daniel Kerr said he was shocked to learn that Kraft, who is worth $6 billion, was paying for sex inside a shopping-centre massage parlour, the Orchids of Asia Day Spa. B次元官网网址淲e are as equally stunned as everyone else,B次元官网网址� Kerr said.
Most people charged for the first time with soliciting a prostitute in Florida are allowed to enter a diversion program, said attorney David Weinstein, a former prosecutor. Kraft would probably have to perform 100 hours of community service and attend a course on the harmful effects of prostitution and sex trafficking, he said.
The arrest could also get Kraft in trouble with the NFL, which in a statement said only that it is B次元官网网址渁ware of the ongoing law enforcement matter and will continue to monitor developments.B次元官网网址�
Under league policy, players, owners, coaches and other employees can be punished for B次元官网网址渃onduct detrimental to the integrity of and public confidence inB次元官网网址� the NFL.
B次元官网网址淥wnership and club or league management have traditionally been held to a higher standard and will be subject to more significant discipline,B次元官网网址� the policy says.
The Patriots won the Super Bowl this month over the Los Angeles Rams for their sixth NFL championship in the past 18 seasons, making them the most successful team in pro sports during that span. Before the Super Bowl, several retired NFL players appeared in a public service announcement decrying sexual exploitation and human trafficking in Atlanta, the host city.
Kraft lives in Massachusetts and has a home in the Palm Beach area. Though he is a Democrat, he is friendly with President Donald Trump and a frequent guest at TrumpB次元官网网址檚 Mar-a-Lago club. KraftB次元官网网址檚 wife, Myra Hiatt Kraft, died in 2011. He has been dating 39-year-old actress Ricki Noel Lander since 2012.
B次元官网网址淲ell itB次元官网网址檚 very sad. I was very surprised to see it. HeB次元官网网址檚 proclaimed his innocence, totally,B次元官网网址� Trump said at the White House on Friday.
In a statement, KraftB次元官网网址檚 representatives said they B次元官网网址渃ategorically deny that Mr. Kraft engaged in any illegal activity.B次元官网网址�
The spa Kraft allegedly visited is in a busy, upper-middle-class shopping centre with neighbours that include a dentist, a real estate office, surf and bike shops and a Publix supermarket.
Terry Spencer And Joshua Replogle, The Associated Press
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