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Guilford Kids Charged in Prostitution Ring
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By Mark Zaretsky and Lynn Fredricksen
GUILFORD, Conn - Two 17-year-old Guilford High School
students who allegedly tried to press minor and juvenile high school girls into
a prostitution ring surrendered Friday after warrants were issued for their
arrests, police said.
Antonio Villani of 6 Burgis Lane and Charlene Carrado of 456 Goose Lane were
charged with two counts of promoting prostitution in the first degree and two
counts of risk of injury or impairing the morals of children, police said.
Villani also was charged with an additional count of promoting prostitution in
the second degree.
A third arrest is pending, Deputy Police Chief Tom Terribile said.
At a recent party in this affluent suburban town, Villani and Carrado allegedly
offered to have underage girls perform oral sex acts on other students for $40
each, Terribile said. They allegedly actively recruited clients and girls to
work for them.
"He brought them to a party," Terribile said. "Terms were laid
out for the costs associated with performing a sex act."
He identified the act as oral sex and said the girls agreed to perform it for
$40.
Terribile and Superintendent of Schools Barbara Truex both said that to the
best of their knowledge no money changed hands and no sex acts took place.
Police launched the investigation about a week ago after some high school girls
complained Villani tried to talk them into going to work for him, Terribile
said.
Police Sgt. John Dunn said he believes the risk of injury to a minor charges
were included because some of the girls allegedly recruited were underage.
"We believe they were trying to entice one or more juveniles into
prostitution," he said.
Villani and Carrado have been given "lengthy suspensions" from
school, Truex said.
"It was high school, and it was primarily these two kids," Truex said
of the alleged ring. "There were a couple of other kids who were very
peripherally involved. There were two other kids who complained about it.
"It's the first time in my career that I've been aware of something like
that happening," she added.
But "it's over," Truex said. "It's done with. I think the
administration acted very appropriately.
"I believe this was contained," she said. "It's very isolated --
I think that this was activity confined to two youngsters who just got out of
bounds."
"I'm disappointed to hear that Guilford is realizing many of the same
problems we often thought of as the problems of other towns," said First
Selectman Sam Bartlett.
"It's a horrible thing to hear," said longtime Guilford resident Ron
Johnson, who greeted the news with shocked disbelief.
"I haven't heard of anything like that around here in the 20 years I've
been here," he said.
The families of Villani and Carrado could not be reached for comment.