DID CHRISTIE GO EASY ON A HUMAN TRAFFICKER JUST TO BUST A SMALL-TIME POL?

By Olivia Nuzzi

DID CHRISTIE GO EASY ON
A HUMAN TRAFFICKER JUST TO BUST A SMALL-TIME POL?

Chris Christie built his reputation as a crime-fighter. So why did he cut a deal with an accused sex slave ringleader—and send to jail a Democratic mayor, instead?

Beginning in 2003, members of a smuggling ring in Honduras approached girls, some just 14 years of age, and talked them into illegally entering the United States with the promise of waitressing jobs.

After making it over the border, during which time the smugglers allegedly raped some of the girls, they landed in Houston, Texas. They were temporarily held there before making the rest of their journey north to Hudson County, New Jersey.

That’s when the girls learned the truth. They were never going to be waitresses.

The girls worked in one of several bars, Puerto de la Union in Guttenberg or Puerto de la Union II and El Paisano in Union City, owned by Luisa Medrano. They were on the job for 48 hours per week, making just $240 -- money that would have to go to pay off their smuggling debts, which ranged from $10,000 to $20,000. For that tiny salary, the girls were required to dance and drink with male patrons, and they were encouraged to prostitute themselves.

"If you wanted a beer, it was $4 … If you wanted a 'special beer' it was $14," Francisco Arroyo, a truck driver and customer at Puerto de la Union, told the Hudson Reporter. "These girls would do everything to the guys. I couldn't believe it was happening."

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http://www.thedailybeast.com/feature/2014/did-christie-go-easy-on-a-human-trafficker-just-to-bust-a-small-time-pol.html