Man sentenced to 9 years for running Palm Springs prostitution ring
A man who ran a multi-state prostitution ring based in Palm Springs was sentenced today to nine years in prison.
Ofer Moses Lupovitz was convicted last October of one count each conspiracy and pimping in connection with his ownership of Elite escort service, which, according to prosecutors, employed as many as 200 women who provided sex for money throughout California, Arizona and Oregon from 2002 to 2006.
Lupovitz, 49, was acquitted of one count of pandering. After the trial, he pleaded guilty to 151 money laundering counts. He still faces trial on six tax-related charges, according to court records.
Lupovitz was indicted with six others, three of whom were also convicted, after an investigation into a call girl operation that authorities dismantled in 2006. The other three remain fugitives.
Elite charged $250 for a girl to show up, then charged anywhere from $150 to $4,000 for an array of sex acts, according to court papers. The pimps retained 100 percent of the “show” fees and a third of earnings from the hourlong sexual encounters, and the women were expected to tip their drivers and the appointment secretaries, according to the prosecution.
The defendants had joint bank accounts and purchased million-dollar houses adjacent to one another on a cul-de-sac in Rancho Mirage, according to prosecutors. They set up a phone bank, using nearly 120 different numbers that prospective clients would call to make an appointment with a prostitute.
Calls were routed to an office in Palm Springs, where receptionists took client information and processed credit card transactions, according to the prosecution.
