Bankruptcy For One Couple Means Running a Brothel

A Westchester couple were charged with promoting prostitution from their home. And what's more, the Journal News describes thirty-four-year-old Robert Werner and his 32-year-old wife Heather Mazzenga as "victims of the housing market"!

The New Rochelle Police had been doing their rountine monitoring of Craigslist and became suspicious when they saw a few ads, including one that said, "Grand Opening Special! Hot models, soft sensual touch...New Rochelle has Westchester's first and only member's only club for men and women...We offer role play, fetishes, light body rubs, body rejuvenation and dominatrix." When they arrived, they arrested four women for prostitution and practicing massage without a license.

One of the woman denied there was prostitution, explaining to the Journals News that it was "consensual voyeurism" and saying, "There was no penetration, there was no genital or body touching for money. It was completely voyeuristic behavior and self-expression." The brothel was being run out of a house in New Rochelle that's across the street from the Thomas Paine Cottage. Common sense - ha!

Police believe that troubles in the housing market caused the couple's financial troubles (Werner and Mazzenga had filed for bankruptcy a few days earlier and narrowly avoided having their home in Pleasantville foreclosed), but that didn't mean much to neighbors. One told the Journal News, "I knew he couldn't unload the house. A lot of people can't sell their houses, but they don't open brothels. He's just the jerk to drop something like that in here. There are 22 kids who live in the surrounding houses."

Contact the author of this article or email tips@gothamist.com with further questions, comments or tips.

By Jen Chung in News on September 11, 2007 11:39 AM

Comments [rss]

guest

The world is filled with pimps and hoes! No matter the name of your game someone is either pimping you or your pimping someone else.

Take a look: The police who busted these two are getting pimped by the DA who wishes to keep his job, run for office or retire and operate a security firm = the tax paying public is the john. His stock portfolio almost certainly includes a private prison firm.

It's ALWAYS about the dollars- What do you think we're doing out here in the desert?

With little exception, someone is ALWAYS making money no matter how it's cloaked.

The kids, your safety, the BS law, if someone can make you want it - someone's cashing in on it.

TIP: Stop looking at the sizzle, and take a look at the steak!

guest

Mazzenga and Werner are swingers

Google Lucyandricky3 Take a gander at their group posts

and see how "Lucy" talks about openning her club

and much much more!

guest

#29..I'm the one who graduated from high school with her (#14 above) ...I remember her mom from a store that I used to work in....she was such a nice woman & worked with teens at risk from what I remember....what an embarassment!!

guest

I'm an old family friend. I coincidentally turned the television news on when I got home on Tuesday night and saw Heather and her husband become the first story to flash across the screen. I know that she wasn't raised that way! Her poor mom....

guest

Is it lamer to blame one's whoring on the housing market or spend taxpayers' money trolling Craigslist for whores to bust?

guest

OMG!LOL I went to ucumentertainment one of the ucum models looks alot like heather mazzenga good spotting #26

guest

OOOOOOh theres ads on craigslist listing

ucumentertainment.com as there website take a look!

guest

LOL, I love it when I find out that people I hated in HS turned out to be complete fuck-ups.

guest

#14 get over yourself! From what i hear this is BS and is a potical issue. You can't even find the ad's on craigslist, i have checked. Your prob pissed cause she didn't give you the time of day back then!!!

guest

He knew there were 22 kids because he's preying on them thru myspace.

guest

hey wait a minute, how did that interviewee know there are 22 kids who live in the surrounding houses?

robingee

What's the big deal. Consenting adults.

guest

Why do people wait till they hit bankruptcy before going into prostitution?

Offbalance

1. Hey Peter - save the grammar, save the world?

2. Right - the cops were on craigslist as part of their "regular sting." Now I know where all those angry missives on the Rants and Raves board come from!

guest

By which #17 means, hurting anyone who wasn't paying for it.

Ba-dum bum!

guest

I missed the part where it said they were hurting anyone

guest

wow, I agree with MGnyc for once.

it's called hustling, you gotta do what you gotta do. Sell drugs, sell pussy, anything to get paid.

no different than the boiler rooms, churn it and burn it.

MarygraceNYC

Every one has got to do, what they have to do! Live and let live is what I say. And children would not be wandering into a strangers home. Come on parents!! Have a little control over your children.

guest

Ha Ha...I went to high school with Heather Mazzenga....I can see she got far in life!

guest

I applaud their ingenuity! They weren't waiting for a bailout, they were being industrious.

guest

It's great that we live in a world where it's ok to buy handguns, but not handjobs.

There's the old joke about liberals: If they walked into a strip club and saw a 14 year old on stage their first question would be "Does she have a medical plan?"

guest

Is it really getting that dangerous to use Craigslist these days? I mean, I found my pot dealer on Craigslist.

guest

Thank you sir - the next time I need to use the word "dominatrix" in a sentence I will certainly remember that.

guest

It's great that we live in a world where it's ok to buy handguns, but not handjobs.

guest

dominatrices, too

guest

Won't somebody think of the children!?!?

They could accidentally wander into the brothel.. and into the hands of a dominatrix.

You know, that's what domantrices really are after...

guest

Peter the Pedant!

guest

Gothamist, you could certainly use a talented proofreader like Peter. I mean, what's the going rate these days - $7.50 an hour? Now how's that for killing two birds with one stone? LOL

guest

haha Peter the Proofreader Against the World!

guest

Ok, are you proud of yourself now? Do you have that warm and fuzzy feeling? lol

Peter

We offer role play, fetishes, light body rubs, body rejuvenation and dominatrix

Bad grammar. Dominatrix is a singular noun.

The ad should have read

" ... and a dominatrix"

or

" ... and dominatrices.