Officer tied to pimping case

Los Angeles Times

LOS ANGELES — A veteran Los Angeles police officer is under investigation for his alleged participation in a "highly organized prostitution ring" that masqueraded as a legitimate escort service, according to court documents.

Detectives suspect that Officer Eric Garcia, 37, significantly augmented his LAPD salary by working as a part-time pimp, dispatching prostitutes, including his live-in girlfriend, to Los Angeles area hotels and motels to have sex with customers, according to affidavits filed in support of search warrants.

A judge approved those warrants, and detectives searched Garcia’s home, credit union and Wilshire Division police locker for evidence of his suspected "criminal profiteering from prostitution."

Financial records seized from Garcia’s police credit union account show that he made cash deposits totaling $22,000 over a six-week period this spring. Investigators also seized $7,000 in cash — in $100 and $50 denominations — from an envelope marked "August" atop a dresser from his Los Angeles home. One search was conducted in August and a second was done last month.

Garcia, relieved from active duty at the police department while the investigation is under way, did not respond to requests for comment. He has not been charged with any crime, though a district attorney’s official this week confirmed that criminal charges against the officer and others allegedly involved in the business "are under review."

Garcia’s girlfriend declined to comment on the case.

No other police officers are suspected of involvement in the operation, a source close to the case said.

The investigation into Garcia started in June when an LAPD vice detective noticed an ad in the yellow pages of a telephone directory for "A Plus Escort Service." Suspicious that the service was a front for prostitution, the detective called to arrange for an escort to meet him at a hotel in Los Angeles’ San Fernando Valley.

"A male adult, calling himself ‘Jason,’ later identified as Eric Garcia, answered the call," according to a search warrant affidavit. "He stated the rate was $200 cash for a one-hour massage and ‘companionship.’ "

About an hour after the call, a woman showed up at the undercover officer’s door and allegedly agreed to have sex for money, according to the affidavits. The woman was not arrested at that time to protect the secrecy of the ongoing investigation, the documents state.

Over the next few months, detectives continued to build a case against Garcia and the service, which is owned by Nick David. David, 33, is also a target of the investigation, the affidavits said. As part of their case, undercover detectives obtained alleged prostitution violations against other escorts who worked for the service.

Investigators suspect that as many as 28 escorts worked for the service. By Aug. 22, 2001, the service had generated $159,000 in credit card business alone, court documents show.

David, who according to a district attorney spokesperson was sentenced to three years’ probation after pleading no contest to an unrelated felony pimping charge in 1998, denied the recent allegations that he was involved in an illegal escort service.

David said he could not be held responsible for what his employees do behind closed doors.

"If an escort wants to do that service on her own, to make money just for her, are we still pimping?" David asked. "That’s her business."

"I’m innocent," David said.

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