Fort Worth Mom Shocked By Charges in Teen Prostitution Ring: Young Girls Coerced By Alleged Gang Mem

Jan 16, 10:13 AM

Jan. 16--FORT WORTH -- The mother of a 16-year-old boy charged with operating a teenage prostitution ring said Tuesday that she is shocked by the allegations against her son and several of his friends, and she expressed sympathy for the young victims and their families.

"I have a daughter, too," the woman said after a hearing for her son and two other juvenile suspects. "I feel sorry for those girls. I feel bad for their parents."

During the hearing, the woman told a judge that she is embarrassed by the allegations.

"He left the house whenever he wanted to," the woman said. "I didn't know what to do. I didn't know what he was doing."

Authorities have charged the woman's son and six other teenagers, all allegedly members of a South Fort Worth gang, with a variety of crimes, including sexual assault, engaging in organized criminal activity, prostitution, and kidnapping and trafficking of a person.

Police said the group -- which included a 15-year-old girl -- used threats and sexual violence to force at least five girls, ages 13 to 16, to have sex with gang members and customers. The girls are believed to have been runaways.

Investigators got a break in the case Jan. 3 when they arrested local businessman Chang Lee after they caught him, they allege, with a 14-year-old girl. Mr. Lee, 56, is charged with engaging in organized crime, prostitution and aggravated kidnapping. He was being held Tuesday in the Tarrant County Jail in lieu of $325,000 bail.

The ring has been operating for at least five months, police said.

"Basically, it's a human trafficking case with promoting prostitution," said Lt. K.W. Dean of the Fort Worth police major crimes division. "There's some other facets to it, including sexual assault. In general, you had a local gang that preyed on younger teenaged girls by bringing them into the gang and feigning affection for them."

Lt. Dean said the girls were primed with drugs, beaten and raped by gang members. If they refused to cooperate, gang members threatened to harm their families.

Gang members charged customers $50 to $100 for sex with the girls. Mr. Lee was their most frequent customer, Lt. Dean said.

Three of the accused teenagers were arrested Monday and appeared in Tarrant County juvenile court Tuesday.

Associate Judge Kim Brown ordered the three, who are not being named because they are minors, to remain in juvenile custody for now.

The mother of the 15-year-old girl said she didn't believe the allegations against her daughter.

"No, it's not fair," the woman said. "It's completely not fair."

Four other teens -- two of whom are charged as adults -- were arrested earlier this month along with Mr. Lee at a Glen Garden Drive apartment complex from which the gang operated, police said.

One of those teens is being held at the juvenile detention facility in Fort Worth pending further proceedings. Another was released with an electronic monitor attached, said Assistant Tarrant County District Attorney Tim Bednarz.

Authorities said some or all of the teenagers charged as juveniles could be certified to stand trial as adults, meaning they would face harsher sentences, including life in prison.

The two teenagers already charged as adults, Diego Rodriguez, 19, and Martin Reyes, 17, are accused of engaging in organized criminal activity and aggravated kidnapping. Mr. Rodriguez also is charged with trafficking of a person. He was being held at the Tarrant County Jail; his bail amount was unclear Tuesday night.

Mr. Reyes was being held at the Tarrant County Jail in lieu of $150,000 bail.

Lt. Dean said the victimized girls are now in a safe place. He said that the investigation, which began in August, remains open and that authorities are searching for additional suspects and victims.

"The girls are where they need to be," Lt. Dean said. "They are no longer with these gang members. Our hope is that some of the public attention will trigger some more folks to come forward."

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