Patriots’ owner charged with soliciting prostitutes at day spa linked to human trafficking

In the wake of a record-tying, six-time Super Bowl victory, Robert Kraft, the 77-year-old owner of the New England Patriots, has been flagged for a serious personal foul. He faces two counts of soliciting prostitutes.

Kraft was allegedly a “regular” at the Orchids of Asia spa, a nondescript day spa at a strip mall in Jupiter, Florida. Law enforcement raided the spa and nine others as part of a wider crackdown on sex trafficking in Palm Beach County. More than 300 arrest warrants have been issued, and at least one ringleader is facing charges for human sex trafficking.

According to law enforcement, Chinese sex workers were kept in confinement, not even allowed to leave the premises where they both lived and worked. Police used hidden cameras to identify patrons and record their illicit activities.

Police spared Kraft the “walk of shame,” declining to take him into custody. The charge is a misdemeanor, which means the penalties will likely amount to only a slap on the wrist – fines and probation. Nevertheless, it’s an embarrassment, and it will certainly damage Kraft’s reputation (not to mention his relationship with his girlfriend, 39-year-old actress Ricki Lander).

As CNBC reports, the charge also reflects poorly on President Trump, who is friends with Kraft. Trump recently pledged to end human trafficking and has made the issue a government-wide priority. Kraft is reportedly a frequent patron of Trump’s Mar-a-Lago Club in Palm Beach, just a half-hour south of Orchids of Asia.