
An arrest warrant has been issued for the highly visible NFL figurehead.
New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft has been charged with two misdemeanor counts of soliciting a prostitute, according to police officials in Jupiter, Florida. He’s now wanted by police only weeks after his team won its sixth Super Bowl.
Jupiter, FL police chief confirms NE Patriots owner Robert Kraft charged in prostitution ring bust
— Jesse Rodriguez (@JesseRodriguez) February 22, 2019
The charges are part of a wide-scale prostitution bust in the southeastern Florida town. Kraft was one of 25 individuals to be observed by police at the Orchids of Asia Day Spa, one of five local institutions under police surveillance for several months. An arrest warrant for the for the longtime Patriots owner, who was reportedly twice caught on camera involved in sex acts at the massage parlor, is expected to be issued Monday. If convicted, he’ll face up to 120 days in jail.
That warrant will be sent to his permanent residence in Massachusetts, and he’ll have the opportunity to either turn himself in or send a lawyer as his representative. Kraft denied the charges in a brief statement released by his legal counsel Friday.
“We categorically deny that Mr. Kraft engaged in any illegal activity. Because it is a judicial matter, we will not be commenting further.”
What happens to Kraft now?
Martin County Sheriff William Snyder hinted at a major name in a Tuesday press conference detailing his department’s investigation into a human trafficking ring. That name was Kraft, who owns property in nearby Palm Beach and allegedly had his chauffeur drive him to the spa for the acts that eventually led to his charges. Snyder’s task force has made 165 arrests in a case the sheriff says “go[es] from here to New York to China, in Florida from here to Orange County ... I think it’s very safe to say without any hyperbole that this is the tip of the iceberg.”
Video: Police in Jupiter, Florida announce the charges against @Patriots owner Robert Kraft of soliciting prostitution as part of a wider human trafficking sting operation pic.twitter.com/lGPREB4zOu
— Curtis Houck (@CurtisHouck) February 22, 2019
“They were cooking on the back steps of the business. These women were sleeping in massage parlors, on the massage tables and had no access to transportation,” said Synder, who noted victims averaged eight clients a day. “If you do the math, that is about 1,500 men a year, with no days off.”
Kraft’s solicitation charge typically results in a diversionary program regarding the dangers of prostitution before the charges are then dropped. However, the Patriots owner’s high profile suggests his upcoming arrest could be anything but standard. Even if officials clear his record in south Florida, he’ll still have to deal with the NFL.
What will the NFL do?
Kraft’s role in a sex trafficking ring, even a minor one with potentially no knowledge of the ring itself, is certain to bring down heavy discipline from a league that has been eager to clean up its image. Friday’s charges are a clear violation of the NFL’s personal conduct policy, and will likely lead to a suspension and significant fine.
If that happens, it would make Kraft the first owner to be disciplined since Jim Irsay was arrested under suspicion of DUI and drug possession in 2014. While the Colts owner was given a year of probation from a local judge after pleading guilty to the charges, he was also suspended by the NFL for six games and fined $500,000 for his transgression.
The NFL says it is monitoring the situation.
The NFL statement on #Patriots owner Robert Kraft and his solicitation charge: “The NFL is aware of the ongoing law enforcement matter and will continue to monitor developments.”
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) February 22, 2019
This story will be updated as details emerge.