STUART, Fla. - A local attorney says prostitution charges against two of his clients should be dismissed all because of something Martin County Sheriff William Snyder said during a sit-down interview with Contact 5.
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Crime investigator Merris Badcock interviewed Snyder about his decision to use sneak-and-peek warrants in the case when the conversation turned to questions about privacy for those seeking legal massages.
“We did not monitor any women who went into the parlor. We just assumed they were there for legitimate purposes,” said Snyder.
Now, a local attorney says that comment shows proof of “selective prosecution”, and wants prostitution-related charges against his clients Mark Updike and William Bohen thrown out.
According to arrest paperwork, both men allegedly visited Bridge Day Spa in Hobe Sound, one of five spas busted in the Martin County sting.
Their attorney, James Regan argues Martin County detectives discriminated against male customers by only arresting men and not arresting any female customers.
This is the latest attempt by a local attorney hoping to get charges thrown out against alleged ‘johns’ arrested in this case.
No date has been set for a judge to hear on Regan’s motion but Contact 5 will be in the courtroom when that happens.
Contact 5 also uncovered more search warrants filed in the spa bust cases out of Jupiter.
Eight warrants show detectives were looking for information in four cell phones, two iPads, two HD video recorders, and one computer.
The warrants appear to have been filed after the initial arrests of two alleged madams of the now infamous Orchids of Asia Day Spa, Lei Wang and Hua Zhang.
The sneak-and-peek warrant used by Jupiter Police detectives to obtain video of New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft has not yet been made public. Last week, Kraft’s attorneys filed a motion to keep the video from ever seeing the light of day.
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