Two men were charged yesterday with transporting women across state lines for prostitution after the feds identified a high-end call-girl ring following a yearlong probe, officials said.
John Picinic Jr. and David Baron were charged by IRS and Homeland Security agents after investigators determined that “Pure Platinum Models” was really a prostitution-escort service catering to clientele in the city and New Jersey, officials said.
Picinic and Baron organized door-to-door deliveries of escorts to high-end customers in the metro area, according to Brooklyn federal prosecutors.
Business seemed brisk: between July 2009 and February 2012, the service allegedly rang up more than $1.2 million worth of credit-card charges. One grateful customer gave a call girl a $6,000 tip, the feds said.
Many of the call girls were dropped off at Manhattan hotels to meet clients, the feds said.
The drivers would often stop on the way to pick up condoms, according to authorities.
Picinic not only handled financial arrangements for the girls, he also took side benefits and engaged in liaisons with many of them, a source said.
Prosecutors say Baron was paid from $140 to $180 each time he dropped off an escort at a client’s address.
Both suspects pleaded not guilty at their arraignments.