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IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE
F速 - 9 20U
EASTERN DISTRICT OF VIRGINIA Alexandria Division
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, v.
ALEXANDER RIVAS, also known as "CASPER" DEFENDANT.
) ) ) ) ) ) ) )
UNDER SEAL
CRIMINAL NO. 1:11MJ122
Hon. Theresa Carroll Buchanan
AFFIDAVIT IN SUPPORT OF CRIMINAL COMPLAINT
I, Richard M. Baer, Special Agent of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (hereafter "FBI"), being duly sworn, do depose and state that:
1.
I am a Special Agent of the FBI and have been employed as such since November
2006. I am currently assigned to a squad that investigates violent gangs, criminal enterprises, and the corresponding criminal offenses that these groups commit, out of the Northern Virginia
Resident Agency of the Washington, D.C. Field Office of the FBI and I have been assigned to this squad since August 2008. During the course of my participation in criminal investigations, I have testified in grand jury and trial proceedings.
2.
I have attended classes and courses conducted by the FBI and other government
agencies regarding the conduct of various criminal activities by persons and/or groups who are gang members. I have participated in a number of criminal investigations conducted by the FBI,
Immigrations and Customs Enforcement (hereafter "ICE"), and other law enforcement agencies, which resulted in the arrest of numerous subjects, the recovery of weapons, and the identification
of victims. In addition, as a result of my training and experience, I am familiar with how persons
2
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who are members of violent gangs use various criminal enterprise schemes to conduct their activities.
3.
I have become knowledgeable with the enforcement of state and federal laws
pertaining to gang participation, offenses against persons, and property offenses. 4.
This affidavit is made in support of an arrest warrant and criminal complaint
charging that ALEXANDER RIVAS (hereafter "Rivas"), also known as Casper, did knowingly, in or affecting interstate or foreign commerce, recruit, entice, harbor, transport, provide, obtain, and maintain by any means a person, knowing, or in reckless disregard of the fact, that the
person had not attained the age of 18 years and would be caused to engage in a commercial sex act, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1591(a)(1).
5.
The facts and information contained in this affidavit are based upon my personal
knowledge and information obtained from other federal and state law enforcement officers. All
observations referenced in this affidavit that were not made by me were related to me by the person who made such observations.
6.
Since this affidavit is being submitted for the limited purpose of obtaining a
criminal complaint and arrest warrant, it is not intended to include each and every fact observed by me or known to the government. I have set forth only those facts necessary to support probable cause. 7.
Rivas is a citizen of the United States of America, and a self-admitted member of
Mara Salvatrucha 13 (hereafter "MS-13"), a violent international gang with members located across the United States and throughout Central and North America. At present, Rivas resides at an address in Alexandria, Virginia, at a location known to law enforcement.
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8.
On November 9,2010, an Alexandria Police Department patrol officer was
flagged down by a witness (hereafter "Wl") stating that his/her daughter (hereafter "VI") was a
juvenile runaway from Fairfax County, Virginia. Wl suspected that VI was staying at Rivas' residence. Officers responded to that location and observed VI, accompanied by Rivas, exit the
apartment building. Officers confirmed with the Fairfax County Police Department that VI was a juvenile runaway and released her to her family. 9.
During the night of her recovery, I interviewed VI. At that time, she stated that
she was fourteen years old, in the seventh grade, and attended a middle school in Alexandria,
Virginia. She stated that she ran away from home, initially staying with a friend who goes by the nickname Lagrimas. According to VI, at four or five in the morning on the day she was rescued,
VI had traveled to stay with Rivas at his residence. VI stated that she first met Rivas at a park during the summer of 2010. VI also reported that during her association with Rivas she met another girl who was seventeen years old and goes by the nickname "Gringa".
10.
During a subsequent interview, VI stated that Rivas used her as a prostitute
during a time period in or about October 2010. VI stated that Rivas transported her to different
locations in Virginia, Washington D.C., and Maryland to engage in prostitution activities. VI further advised that she would engage in vaginal sexual intercourse with various male customers.
VI stated that she occasionally used Trojan brand condoms while working as a prostitute for
Rivas. According to VI, she told Rivas that she was 14 years old during the time period she worked for Rivas as a prostitute.
11.
VI was also shown a photograph of Rivas and she positively identified the person
depicted in the photograph as Rivas. VI stated shewould call Rivas by the nickname "Casper." 12.
On January 24, 2011, Detective Victor Ignacio of the Alexandria Police
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Department and I interviewed a seventeen year old female (hereafter "V2"). Based on my investigation, I know V2 is known by the moniker "Gringa." V2 agreed be interviewed and her mother also consented to the interview. V2 stated that she ran away from home several months prior and would stay with several friends while on the run. According to V2, Rivas was one of
these friends. She had met Rivas three years prior while they were both locked up at the juvenile detention center together. V2 stated that Rivas is a member of the gang MS-13 and goes by the
nickname Casper. V2 believes that most of Rivas' friends are also MS-13 members. 13.
V2 reported that while staying with Rivas, V2 met VI, who was also runaway.
According to V2, VI told her that she and Rivas had a business together in which VI worked as
a prostitute. V2 also reported that VI told her the money was good and that V2 should consider
doing it also. According to V2, Rivas also explained the business to V2 and how it operated. V2 stated that shortly thereafter, she began working with Rivas as a prostitute.
14.
V2 reported that Rivas would receive cellular telephone calls from prospective
prostitution clients and deliver V2 to locations where the clients were waiting. According to V2, Rivas would make these "deliveries" using his friends' cars and Rivas would wait in the car
while V2 engaged in sexual intercourse and other sexual acts with clients for money. V2 did not remember all of the specific, geographic places where she engaged in prostitution, but
remembered going to Woodbridge, Fairfax, and Alexandria, Virginia to engage in prostitution.
V2 also recalled that on one occasion Rivas drove her to Maryland to engage in prostitution. According to V2, Rivas would typically deliver V2 to apartments, but if the clients reserved a hotel room, she would service clients at hotels as well.
15.
V2 reported that Rivas was aware that V2 was under 18 years of age. According
to V2, Rivas would charge the clients approximately $50 and split the proceeds equally with V2.
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V2 stated that Rivas usually collected the money from V2's clients. According to V2, she would
work as many appointments as Rivas would set up and she would work any day of the week. V2 estimated that she made thousands of dollars working for Rivas. V2 stated that Rivas not only
arranged V2's prostitution appointments and transported her to those appointments, but Rivas also provided food and a place to stay for V2. According to V2, Rivas would basically get her anything she needed. V2 reported that Rivas always provided the condoms she used while she worked as a prostitute for Rivas.
16.
V2 stated that she worked as a prostitute for Rivas for multiple months during the
late summer and fall of 2010.
17.
V2 reported that she observed Rivas carrying a machete with him while he
transported V2 to prostitution appointments. According to V2, Rivas nicknamed the machete "his wife". V2 recalled one occasion when four of V2's clients did not want to pay full price.
According to V2, Rivas went into the apartment with another male and told V2 to go out to the car. Shortly thereafter, Rivas returned to the vehicle and had apparently gotten all the money the four clients owed.
18.
On January 4, 2011, Detective Ignacio and I interviewed Rivas. During that
interview, Rivas provided the following information:
(a)
Rivas is a member of the Virginia Locos clique ("VLS") of MS-13.
(b)
Rivas has two brothers who used to sell beer out of their apartment to members of
the Hispanic community where they lived. As patrons visited their home, Rivas would tell them that he (Rivas) prostituted girls and subsequently established a prostitution clientele with the
construction workers and illegal immigrants that visited his apartment to purchase beer. After receiving telephone calls requesting girls, he would deliver prostitutes to the patrons that called
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and collect money from them in exchange for the sexual services provided by the prostitutes.
Rivas would typically charge the prostitution clients $50 and if he did not like the patron, he would charge more.
(c)
Rivas would transport the girls to the prostitution appointments he arranged.
Rivas would use Lagrimas' car to transport the girls, or tell his sister that he was going to work and borrow her vehicle.
(d)
For his prostitutes, Rivas would buy boxes containing 12-15 condoms from the
drug store. Rivas often purchased Trojan brand condoms for use by his prostitutes.
(e)
Rivas had up to three girls working for him as prostitutes. Rivas identified V1
and V2 as two of his prostitutes. Rivas originally thought that VI was seventeen years old, but he later discovered that she was only fourteen.
(f)
On any given Friday or Saturday night, Rivas would have approximately 100
clients lined up for his prostitution service. Rivas would tell his clients to tell their coworkers.
Often, Rivas did not personally know all of the clients his prostitutes served. According to Rivas, the prostitutes typically kept 75% of the prostitution proceeds and Rivas kept the remaining 25%. Rivas believes that he made approximately $2,000-3,000 prostituting V2 and that her share was over $6,000.
(g)
On one occasion, Rivas brought V2 to a job at a location off of Little River
Turnpike where V2 engaged in sexual acts with three clients. The three individuals refused to
pay for the services. Consequently, Rivas hit one of the guys. When the other two clients started getting ready to attack Rivas, Rivas pulled out a .45 caliber handgun and robbed the three clients
of all of their money. Rivas stole $1,200 from the three men and even gave them his business card with his phone number on it. Rivas challenged the three men to call the police to report the
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robbery and said, "Go ahead and call the police. What are you going to say? That you got robbed after having sex with a minor?" (h)
Rivas would typically charge clients $50 for sexual intercourse with his
prostitutes and told clients that if they brought their friends or more people, he would give them a discount. One client brought seven of his coworkers from Maryland, and because of that, he got
services for free. Rivas charged the clients $90 each, $60 of which went to the girls. These particular eight clients traveled to Virginia in white work trucks and got two hotel rooms, with one prostitute and four clients in each room. 19.
Through independent research, I discovered that no commercially available
condoms, including Trojan brand condoms, are manufactured in the Commonwealth of Virginia. 20.
Based on the foregoing, there is probable cause to believe that in or about October
2010, in Alexandria, Virginia within the Eastern District of Virginia, ALEXANDER RIVAS
(hereafter "Rivas"), also known as Casper, did knowingly, in or affecting interstate or foreign commerce, recruit, entice, harbor, transport, provide, obtain, and maintain by any means a
person, knowing, or in reckless disregard of the fact, that the person had not attained the age of 18 years and would be caused to engage in a commercial sex act, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1591(a)(1).
FURTHER THIS AFFIANT SAYETH NOT.
Richard M. Baer
Special Agent Federal Bureau of Investigation
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Sworn to and deposed to me this _J
day of February, 2011.
At Alexandria, Virginia /s/
Theresa Carroll Buchanan
/""TV United States Magistrate Judge Honorable Theresa Carroll Buchanan UNITED STATES MAGISTRATE JUDGE