Aphrodite Companions Owners Arrested
A reader brought it to my attention this morning that Melissa and Vincent Lombardo, the owners of Aphrodite Companions, were both arrested yesterday. Melissa is known to most as Pamela. In the distant past, I exchanged numerous emails with Pamela and she was very nice and respectful, though we found no common ground for discussion.
Aphrodite Companions was one more business that faced indictment because of how they operated. Really they are charged with money laundering that is based on violating the New York law of promoting prostitution by the feds. I'm sort of surprised that the Travel Act (over the touring escorts) was not thrown in the federal complaint, but the actual indictment is not filed yet, so this is still a possibility.
Read the complaint, which I downloaded in PACER this morning, to understand why you should never participate in the TER (the erotic review) game. I have said it before and I'll say it again: TER is where local and federal agents investigating prostitution participate. The forums are entrenched with cops, whether you choose to believe it or not. The complaint and a few other docs:
Aphrodite Companions Complaint
Aphrodite Companions Detention Order 18 July 2013
Aphrodite Companions Docket Report
I dare you to read that complaint and defend TER to me. At this point, the Lombardos are being held without bail, though they do have arraignment in early August - the 1st I believe. They are both better off staying in custody - that way when they plead to charges, the time served will be counted. And they will eventually plead to charges in this case.
The investigator in this case is a NYPD detective. You could bet your last $ that he's on TER. At any rate, Pamela seemed like a nice woman to me and I am sorry that this has happened to her. I'd also bet that there's an escort or two involved. I have read numerous online stories about Aphrodite Companions written by women claiming to have worked there, but have serious doubts about the veractity of each.
I will post an update when the indictment is available - probably within a week or so.
Tolerating TER: A Reminder
Last night I came across an article online that reminded me of why I shouldn't wish ill will on The Erotic Review (TER). It is my opinion that TER and other sites like it have successfully set women's rights back more than a century. Women are treated like merchandise or a product on Amazon on these sites and many of the male participants would have it no other way as is clear by a read through some reviews.
The problem, at least for me, is that these women accept this delegation to last class citizenry on these websites without much objection as if it's all a part of business. It's not a part of any decent business and shouldn't be acceptable for a woman selling her time and companionship to be reviewed like a pair of shorts or any inanimate object. Companionship is personal and should be treated as such. Most people will not have the same experience anyway because we are talking about people and human behavior here.
So before I digress too far, realize that my issue is the toleration for such behavior by a major online community. Forget the fact that we are all traceable these days and the writing and acceptance of such reviews by all participants is just plain stupid.
I'm sure that there are some mild and kind reviews written by nice gentlemen on TER, ECCIE, and various other review and membership sites in the world of adult business, but they are few and far between. The sort of reviews that I am referring to are what is discussed in the Aphrodite Companions Complaint in #20 on pages 14-15, #23 on pages 23-25, and #25 on pages 25-26.
What sort of deranged client would want to call a "provider" that provides services like that? Well, I will tell you - these are the people that I refused to book when I had escort services. For more than a decade, they've found their own little holes on the internet and succeeded at changing the business for "providers" and services alike. Most of us old-school service owners consider them to be the street trash of adult business.
I have no clue what value a service could see in this sort of thing and consider it a one-way trip down indictment lane. We can all be happy that the great majority of the provider participants require advance appointments and aren't interested in lower rates for dinner bookings. There will always be a place for real escort services.
Yes, I have digressed from the entire point of this post. The article I found last night was written by John Moore: Censorship starts with porn
Mr. Moore is correct, you know, especially with this sentence: "Here’s a radical idea: Let’s subcontract Internet-governance to the Taliban."
I certainly do not want to become the censor of anything in adult business online, but some of the stuff in these reviews is so disgusting that eventually it will run all adult business underground. Agencies have no excuse though. If an escort that's been on TER expresses an interest in working with your business, and you read a review like the ones quoted in the complaint, tell her to retrieve her self-esteem or get used to working alone, but certainly do not attempt to play in that game.
Aphrodite Companions Information Update
It appears that the case against the owners of Aphrodite Companions is closed, which of course makes no sense as there are no documents filed on this - just the notation on the docket report that the case is terminated as of 12 August 2013. The only time I see this sort of conclusion is if a case was filed in a different Circuit. Also, according to the BOP Inmate Locator, both Vincent and Melissa Lombardo are still in MDC Brooklyn with an "unknown" release date. This is some sort of game, but your guess is as good as mine as to what is really happening in the case.
END OF UPDATE
I have read and reread the Aphrodite Companions Complaint numerous times. I suppose that I'm trying to analyze the situation or at least why it happened to this company specifically and perhaps that is an exercise in futility. When you think about it, the how and the why is immaterial. It is what it is, right?
END OF UPDATE
I have read and reread the Aphrodite Companions Complaint numerous times. I suppose that I'm trying to analyze the situation or at least why it happened to this company specifically and perhaps that is an exercise in futility. When you think about it, the how and the why is immaterial. It is what it is, right?
Any escort business that makes the choice to operate in multiple states, or globally as Aphrodite Companions did, could be the next candidate for federal indictment. I figure it's time to discuss it as the indictment may be filed tomorrow or it could also be filed next year or never. I'm not going to sit around and theorize for that long. The feds may not be in any hurry to file that indictment, so I won't be checking PACER on a daily basis, but I usually visit to research a couple of times a week anyway and will check at that time. As of the time of this posting, the indictment has not been filed.
One issue must be stated clearly first: Detective Myles Mahady is an anti-prostitution crusader and he has extensive experience in the field. Whatever he's decided to do by filing that complaint first, you could assume that he knows what he's doing. Most federal prosecutions are by indictment and I'd venture a guess that Mahady is in the midst of a major investigation.
Some Background on Detective Myles Mahady
There is some interesting information on Mahady in the book, "Client 9: The Rise and Fall of Elliot Spitzer," and I happen to have a copy. I found it (new paperback) on sale on Amazon for under $3 around Christmas. Now (this minute) it's on sale for $3.61. Definitely worth a read if you are currently doing business in Manhattan or ever intend to.
While I did not realize it until it was brought to my attention, I know more about Mahady than any book reveals, so I'll leave the information in the book where it is and the decision to read it up to you and tell you something that I already knew. Mahady was the lead detective on the NY Confidential case. In case you are not already aware, Jason Itzler owned NY Confidential and Natalia (Natalie McLennan) was his main escort for most of the duration of that business. Her book is titled, "The Price: My Rise and Fall as Natalia, New York's #1 Escort," though it has a rather high price at the moment.
I have spent much of my spare time blogging about the Paul Bergrin prosecution and trials on the Paul Bergrin Blog this year and on myAccused Madam Blog last year. However, I have no documents from Bergrin's NY state case. Paul Bergrin was Jason Itzler's attorney when Itzler owned NY Confidential (and prior to that) and eventually pleaded to a misdemeanor count in the case just to make it go away as he faced a much worse fiasco of a prosecution in Newark. Natalie McLennan testified for the government in the last Bergrin trial.
Jason Itzler was not called as a witness in Paul Bergrin's last trial and all of Natalie's testimony was really hearsay --- Jason told me this and Jason told me that etc.... So while I considered Itzler an informant in past as a result of statements he made to news reporters, he did not testify in the Bergrin trial. Really, I think he's just a clown. Why? Well, his many statements to news reporters in past. I also blogged about Natalie McLennan during Bergrin's trial:
Detective Mahady worked closely with FBI Special Agent Shawn Brokos in connection with Paul Bergrin's NY state case and held-off on filing it until the feds were ready to file the Newark indictment. Brokos is a real piece of work, but you could read more on that in:
Back to the Aphrodite Companions Case
Take a moment to check a few names in the Bureau of Prisons Inmate Locator and you'll see that Paul Bergrin is in MDC Brooklyn. Other than one week immediately after his trial when he was vindictively transferred to Essex County Jail and separated from all of his legal papers, Bergrin has been in MDC Brooklyn for over 4 years. Guess who else is in MDC Brooklyn... Check the BOP Inmate Locator for Vincent Lombardo and Melissa Lombardo. Interesting indeed.
If you know the Lombardos, you can always write a letter, but I would not attempt to discuss the case with either of them:
Melissa Lee Lombardo - #80711-053
MDC Brooklyn
Metropolitan Detention Center
P.O. Box 329002
Brooklyn, NY 11232
Vincent Lombardo - #80712-053
MDC Brooklyn
Metropolitan Detention Center
P.O. Box 329002
Brooklyn, NY 11232
On a different note, I did some reading on The Erotic Review (TER) last night and consider the situation improved in reference to reviews since my last visit over a year ago. Perhaps the majority of explicit reviews published these days were written by law enforcement or a few idiots. I am not a member and can't access the "juicy details," but site participants do not seem to be as insanely explicit in the discussions as in past.
I did note that one person commented in numerous discussions that the Aphrodite Companions arrest could be attributed to doing business with clients in other countries and several others picked-up on that and used the "foreign commerce" statement from the complain; however, they all omit the "interstate" part of the statement. For the record, any federal indictments or complaints related to escort or prostitution businesses use the terms together.
Any conclusions as to what caused this investigation that resulted in prosecution are theories at this point. It may have been a wire transfer from Dubai to an Aphrodite account or it may simply be the interstate operation business model. It could also be enemies making police complaints - I state this after reading the "rip-off reports" by a vindictive escort or two and the statements of a complaining escort on the ECCIE forum. I have heard a variety of theories and they are all exactly that.
Mentioning the complaining escort on ECCIE, what in the world gave this woman the idea that Aphrodite Companions would pay for her attorney in her solicitation arrest? If this was some promise made by an Aphrodite representative (Pamela) as the woman claims, I can see why Melissa and Vincent Lombardo were arrested and are being prosecuted. But note that I seriously doubt any such promise was made to the complaining escort.
On the Topic of Consultations
I have received so many requests for consultations the last few months, yet have not had a single consult with anyone. In that respect, this is a necessary post and you'll know why by the time it's finished. In all honesty, I did not expect a single request to actually result in a consult anyway because they all read like pure BS.
I believe that more often than not, it's angry law enforcement officers and/or related to the Paul Bergrin case, which I have blogged on relentlessly for some time now, but am now done with. If I had to take a wild guess, I'd say that 9 out of 10 requests are related to the above two groups; perhaps even 10 of 10. Is that crazy or what? I consider it to be so. Too many people with far too much time on their hands while claiming to be public servants.
Some of the most absurd statements and consultation requests are moved to the "abuse" folder and others are deleted. Sometimes, when the message is cloudy, I'll respond and include instructions for payment and a link to my consultation page outlining what specifically I offer and how it works. For your own information, here is a link to that page:
There is a reason behind every statement made on that page. If you clearly have not read either Blueprint for an Escort Service or Complete Blueprint for an Escort Service, you'll need to pay for the Platinum package or theMax package. Obviously the reason for this is that I will be reading much of my book to you on the telephone, so one hour just ain't going to cut it. Really I have no clue why anyone that skipped reading one of those books would even want a consultation with me. Makes no sense whatsoever.
But I have no issue with reading one of the books to you over the phone. Payment is required in advance, of course.
And then there are the requests that I call you by dialing a number on your linked explicit website to schedule a consultation. Why anyone would consider me to be that desperate and/or stupid, I can't even imagine. Me calling you is a consultation and how in the hell would I know if that's your website or not? Duh.
But one of the most absurd sort of requests that I have had on occasion and as recent as last week is the federal inmate that sends me a Corrlinks request. I accept all such requests, well, because I am a nice person and have no clue what they want, but when the first email the inmate sends is a thank-you for agreeing to consult with him about opening an escort service in BOP email, well, expect to get blasted. I didn't agree to crap and only a total moron would ever consult on such a subject via BOP email.
This is what I get for being nice to people. Far too many, especially in LE, do not comprehend that kindness does not equal stupidity. In the last situation described, I responded not only with a blast, but also instructions to inform his handler that no one, let alone me, is that dumb. All informants have handlers. I will tell you that in short time and on the same day, I received a hang-up call from a Miami telephone number on my personal telephone number and that inmate had stated that he was from Miami. His release date in the BOP inmate locator was in 2017. No one should know my personal phone number anyway unless I give it to them and only a few friends have it. Some idiot looking for his next 5K1 or Rule 35 victim. Another duh.
Most recently - like yesterday - I received an extremely lengthy email from someone telling me all the steps he'd made towards opening and operating a service and not even one of those steps is anything close to what I recommend in either book. The party claimed to need a free consultation because he'd spent all his money on attorney consults and non-existent start-up costs, hiring bodyguards, and drivers and on and on and on... I couldn't make this stuff up people. I almost responded by asking him if his email was a joke, but decided to just move the email to that "abuse" folder instead.
I have responded to numerous emails by asking if it was some weird joke lately - they seem to be rolling out of the closet (or coming out of the woodwork) these days, but I really can't get beyond anyone actually thinking I'm that level of stupid.
And then there are the people that email me attempting to change my mind about various things stated in the book and requesting a consultation at the same time. Of course each wants to know how to pay me immediately so that consult can be scheduled ASAP. Of course no money is ever sent to the method I state as the only way to pay me. Of course they email many more times trying desperately to convince me how wrong I am on specific topics. Right.
My books are what I think and nothing anyone could state will ever change my mind. And really who cares anyway? As with any book advising on business, it's up to you to take what you need and leave the rest. Whether you follow any or all of my advice is in the category of not my problem ornone of my business. But I make this statement knowing that it is not real people contacting me with questionable lengthy emails. It is LE dumb enough to think they could succeed in prosecuting me for publishing books about opening and operating a legitimate service. The specific wording in statements reveals that much.
Like I already stated, I believe that at least 9 out of 10 of these requests are law enforcement / prosecutor / investigator related. For whatever strange reasoning, these dolts actually think I fell off a turnip truck somewhere in Idaho yesterday. Just crazy.
At least now I can simply respond with a link to this post. *smile*
Are You Awake Yet
Have you been operating your escort business in the sunshine as advised in the book? I sure hope so. The only reason that I still exist is because I never make any statement anywhere that I couldn't explain to a jury if I had to one day.
Someone - one of those many that wanted a consultation with me recently - stated that my case was irrelevant today. Actually it is more relevant than it has ever been. I suffered through many years of illegal surveillance and harassment by an agency that would do absolutely anything to get rid of me, yet I prevailed. So diss my Blueprint books if you like, but thanks to Edward Snowden and WikiLeaks, I am finally vindicated in all that I stated.
We live in a surveillance state. This applies even if you're in Canada or the UK or anywhere else in the world or that matter. The US spies on everyone, specially anyone that could potentially be engaged in what they consider criminal activity, which has been revealed to be everyone. National security never had anything to do with it.
I was reading a doc over on the Cryptome website a few days ago about the DEA Hemisphere program. It's a slideshow PDF and refers to any calls that go through AT&T switches. Do realize that this does not mean AT&T alone - as much of the world's telephone traffic passes through AT&T at one point or another. If your wireless phone from Sprint or Verizon is roaming, it may be on the AT&T network - you'd never know. Anyway, it's an interesting read:
In another country and think you're safe from the NSA and the many agencies it passes information to? Think again. These people tap the internet backbone and look at the many countries that cooperate with them:
Think that this doesn't apply to you? There are so many documents to read that I won't even begin to compile a list - Cryptome and WikiLeaks Spy Filesdo though. You will find a treasure trove of documents on both - so get started with your reading!
From a Reuters News article dated 6 September 2013:
In a statement on Friday, the Office of the U.S. Director of National Intelligence, which said it was speaking on behalf of all U.S. spy agencies, did not confirm details of the media reports.The statement did acknowledge that the U.S. intelligence community "would not be doing its job" if it did not try to counter the use of encryption by such adversaries as "terrorists, cybercriminals, human traffickers and others."
Read the article: US spy agencies decry latest Snowden revelations
Special attention to the "and others" part of that statement because it means you and me. They have had a backdoor into any and all of your online communications for years, including your bank account info. Nothing that is done online is private, so think about everything that you do online, even when you believed the transaction and/or visit to be private and/or secure.
I have been stating all of this for many years. If you paid attention, well, good for you. If you mocked me, well, be concerned, but more important, implement changes and do things differently from this moment forward. Personally, I believe they've been working on ruining the internet for all of us for years. Get your house in order before it's too late.
Are you awake yet?
Yellow Page and Print Ads
A reader contacted me this week with a question about placing an ad in the print yellow pages in his area. Here is his question and my response and I will also expound on the topic.
The question:
It's [redacted] from [redacted]. If you remember I have an exotic dancer booking agency. I had a quick question. I'd like to get your opinion on yellow page advertisements. I know in your book you suggest it and say its still going good, I know things can change a lot in a few years. Do you still suggest advertising in the book as of 2013-2014 , I can currently get a one inch color ad for $600 for the year. I have only 5 days tonight for the deadline, everybody I talk to is very much so against it and I do a lot of research and it seems a majority of advertisers say they wasted their money last year on the phone book. Do you think that the adult entertainment sector has more people searching for it than other services?I have only several days to the deadline, and your opinion will be considered more than anybody else's at this point. Thank you.
The response:
Unless your market is L.A. or NYC, I still recommend yellow page listings. Is there a bold-print one-line ad available for less? A bold print in red would be even better.
There is still a segment of the population that will look for entertainers / escorts in the yellow pages, especially the over 60 crowd. I used to have some elderly clients that called regularly that were never interested in tech and I know for sure there are still lots of people like this out there. Hell, I still look in the yellow pages if I want a carpet cleaner or mechanic or maid service as there are too many fly-by-night services online.
Do you also offer the costumed striptease service? Like a stripper-gram for a birthday, retirement party etc...? That sort of service alone is worthy of its own red bold print one-line ad. Today you won't make a $million off it, but your business should have a presence in print. If you gave it a line of its own, you'd see the results, but I'm sure you'll get your money back and make something from a bold print ad anyway.
I believe the yellow pages says stability, quality, safe, accountable... and then there are the issues with online advertising for adult business being under attack by State Attorneys General all over the country. Are the people you're asking in your age group? I don't know your age [redacted], but would guess late 20s or early 30s and this group will not look at yellow pages, so you're correct with that. But the bored 70 or 80 year-old with his retirement income will, especially if he has had a negative experience online in past. And I am 53 - still look in the yellow pages for most services.
What I forgot to say...
Sometimes I assume that readers of my Blueprint books see the Blueprint Updates links here and on my website, but that depends where and how they found the book to begin with. I do have a short update on print ads on the Advertising page of the updates and really it is consistent with my response here:
However, the updates have not been updated for over a year now. I still feel the same on the topic of a print yellow pages ad, but only recommend a bold print one-line listing, preferably in red. This type of listing doesn't cost that much.
Another point that I should have made to my reader is that many of the yellow pages advertisers in other markets that he checked with may not have a clue if a customer originally found them in the yellow pages or not. When I am looking for a service in the print book, which I usually do, I then search for that business online. I figure everyone has a website even if it is not included in their small print ad and if they do not have a website where I can find more information, I do not use their service anyway.
So while a website is a must today for any business anywhere, I still feel that a small ad in the yellow pages print book that's widely distributed in your target area is necessary. Consider that the potential customer will Google your business name and/or your telephone number to find more information.
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