The arrests came after an investigation by the prosecutor's office, Flemington and Raritan police departments uncovered the network.
FLEMINGTON — Two men transporting women allegedly used in a prostitution network that stretched from Franklin Township to Lambertville were arrested Tuesday night, officials said today.
The women, who were being driven through Flemington by Brooklyn resident Pedro Sanchez, 52, and Juan Peralta-Mijangos, 20, of Highland Park, were detained but then released, the Hunterdon County Prosecutor’s Office said in a news release. The arrests came after an investigation by the prosecutor’s office, Flemington and Raritan police departments uncovered the network.
“The poor and vulnerable are often exploited, and find themselves lured into this illicit activity, often deceived with promises of decent jobs and a better life for their families,” Hunterdon County Prosecutor Anthony P. Kearns III said in a statement. “Criminal activity such as this has silently made its way into Hunterdon County.”
Human trafficking has been a growing concern throughout New Jersey. Last summer, Trenton police and federal agents conducted a series of raids of brothels where human trafficking was suspected. Though several prostitution arrests were made, there was not enough evidence to prove the women in those cases were being held against their will, and no charges connecting to trafficking were filed.
The Hunterdon County Prosecutor’s Office said that as its investigation continued, the state Division of Criminal Justice’s Human Trafficking Unit and federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations joined local law enforcement. The investigation remains open, Kearns said.
The prostitution network operated beyond Flemington into Raritan, Lambertville, Franklin Township, and out of state, authorities said.
Sanchez and Peralta-Mijangos were arrested separately in Flemington as they moved with the women. The vehicles the men had been driving were seized.
Both were charged with promoting organized street crime by conspiring with others as an organizer or manager to commit crimes of promoting prostitution, along with promoting a prostitution business. Their bail was set at $50,000 each, and they were taken to the Hunterdon County Jail in lieu of it.
Anyone with information connected to the investigation can submit anonymous tips via Crime Stoppers at (800) 321-0010, at www.crimestoppershunterdon.com, or text messaging “HCTIPS” plus message to 274637 (CRIMES). Tipsters can also download the free mobile app “Tipsubmit” and select Hunterdon County to submit anonymous tips via text messaging.
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