Property Owner “Didn’t Know” About Prostitution In Her Home

She read the names on the federal indictment: “Leon, Flores, Reyes-Santillan …” and said she didn’t recognize a single one.

But the indictment says one or more of the illegal aliens pimped other illegals out of Joyce Maharrey’s rental house at 1104 North Holmes Road.

“I (didn’t) know,” said Maharrey. “They were good (tenants) … Never give me no problem or nothing. They paid the rent on time, everything.”

Maharrey said it was an English-speaking woman with the last name “Sanders” who paid the rent — that’s why she couldn’t identify her tenants listed in the indictment. Raul Santillan-Leon, Raymundo Flores, Fernando Reyes-Santillan, Ramiro Sanchez-Garcia, Diego Cortes-Barrientos, Rafael Cortes-Barrientos, Martin Moreno, Eliseo Cortes-Barrientos, Rodolfo Cortes-Barrientos and Cristobal Flores Angeles were each named in the 15-count indictment on charges they harbored illegal alien women at six Memphis properties, enticed them to prostitution and laundered the profits.

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According to the federal indictment, the customers would use poker chips or beads to show proof of purchase — a system that came crashing down as part of operation “Latina Libre” earlier this month. The indictment said postings at the properties advertised $30 could buy a customer 15 minutes with an illegal alien.

At the suspects’ initial court appearance Tuesday, Assistant U.S. Attorney Steve Parker confirmed each of them is an illegal alien, too. None of them speaks English. None of them has an attorney. One of them, Raymundo Flores, is still at large.

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