Fayetteville Couple Sentenced for Role in Prostitution and Money Laundering Conspiracy
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE July 6, 2011 |
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Conner Eldridge, United States Attorney for the Western District of Arkansas, announced today that two individuals involved in a local prostitution ring have been sentenced by U.S. District Chief Judge Jimm Larry Hendren.
Jason M. Fedele, 38, of Fayetteville, Arkansas was sentenced to 33 months imprisonment, 3 years of supervised release and ordered to pay a $4,000 fine on Conspiracy to use an Interstate Facility to Distribute Proceeds From Prostitution and Conspiracy to Commit Money Laundering and 33 months imprisonment, 3 years of supervised release and a $5,000 fine on Felon in Possession of Firearms. The terms of imprisonment are to run consecutive, while the terms of supervised release are to run concurrent.
Tiffney R. Fedele, 39, of Fayetteville, Arkansas was sentenced to 21 months imprisonment, 3 years of supervised release and ordered to pay a $4,000 fine on Conspiracy to use an Interstate Facility to Distribute Proceeds From Prostitution and Conspiracy to Commit Money Laundering, to run concurrent.
“These individuals were part of a large-scale prostitution ring that exploited numerous individuals, including minors. Exploitation of this nature takes a tremendous toll on the lives of the individuals involved. In our office, we are committed to investigating and prosecuting these terrible crimes,” Eldridge stated.
Five other defendants, James B. Mitchell, also of Fayetteville, Sherrie Havens-O’Donnell, Sherry Mae Seals, William Marshall and Conrad Dickson were sentenced on June 16, 2011 and June 17, 2011.
Mitchell pled guilty to Conspiracy to Use an Interstate Facility to Distribute Proceeds From Prostitution and one count of Making a False Statement in an Application to the Social Security Administration (SSA). Mitchell was sentenced to 138 months imprisonment. The remaining co-conspirators pled guilty to the prostitution conspiracy charge with Seals and the Fedeles also pleading guilty to conspiracy to commit money laundering. Havens-O’Donnell was sentenced to 46 months imprisonment, Seals was sentenced to 24 months imprisonment, Marshall was sentenced to 41 months imprisonment, and Dickson received a sentence of 12 months imprisonment.
Mitchell, the Fedeles, and their co-conspirators admitted that the escort service, which Mitchell owned from approximately July 2003 until he was arrested on August 10, 2010, was actually an interstate and intrastate prostitution enterprise which employed escorts to engage in sexual acts with customers for monetary payment. Mitchell and his co-conspirators advertised numerous escort services in the yellow pages of multiple phone books in Arkansas and Missouri. Mitchell hired individuals to answer the service telephone lines and set up appointments for the prostitutes. Prostitutes were paid by customers for sexual services with cash, checks and credit cards. Mitchell charged customers $200 for an hour with females working for his service. Mitchell split the fees 50-50 with the females. Mitchell provided prostitutes with credit card machines so they could manually run credit cards for customers. Mitchell hired other individuals to assist with the collection of the prostitution proceeds. Mitchell and his co-conspirators utilized bank and other financial institutions to conduct financial transactions with the prostitution proceeds, both to conceal and disguise the nature, source and ownership of the proceeds and to promote the carrying-on of the prostitution enterprise.
This case was investigated by IRS Criminal Investigation; the Social Security Administration, Office of Inspector General; Fayetteville Police Department and the Fort Smith Police Department. Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Tracy A. Triplett and Assistant U.S. Attorney Kyra E. Jenner represented the United States.
