Alexander Brothers Sentenced to 30 Years for Sex Trafficking
By @sharedot · · 8 pages
- US News
- Crime
- Justice
Alon, Tal and Oren Alexander were each sentenced Tuesday to 30 years in federal prison for sex trafficking, after prosecutors sought life behind bars.
What happened in the Manhattan courtroom
Alon, Tal and Oren Alexander were each sentenced Tuesday by U.S. District Judge Valerie Caproni in Manhattan to 30 years in federal prison for sex trafficking and other federal crimes, followed by 10 years of supervised release.
Tal, 40, and Oren, 39, were top luxury real estate brokers, while Alon, Oren's twin, was an executive at the family's security company.
A dozen women delivered emotional victim impact statements during the roughly six-hour hearing, and the brothers spoke before sentencing while maintaining their innocence.
Why the 30-year term is a partial rebuke
The sentence landed between the two sides' demands: federal prosecutors argued the men deserved life in prison, citing the callousness of attacks they said the brothers would laugh about and brag about afterward, while defense attorneys asked for the mandatory minimum of 15 years, saying the men had stopped their behavior after meeting their wives.
Judge Caproni declined to impose life sentences, and according to NBC News she said she did not believe the brothers were beyond redemption. Still, she called their conduct 'monstrous' and said that until each defendant comes to terms with what he did, he poses a risk.
The evidence: a yearslong 'playbook'
At the five-week trial, prosecutors laid out evidence that the brothers used their wealth and social status to lure women to luxury locations, then drugged or forced them into sexual assaults — often while the women were unconscious or incapacitated.
Eleven women testified about being assaulted by one or more of the brothers, and prosecutors said more than 70 women reported accounts to investigators.
Victims confront the brothers in court
Victims used the hearing to describe lifelong harm, several speaking under pseudonyms. 'We are not disposable and they are not untouchable,' a victim identified as Katie Moore told the court.
Isa Brooks, who said she was raped by two of the brothers and their friends as a teenager, said she still has flashbacks more than a decade later, while Maya Miller said of Tal Alexander that 'what happened to me was a choice made for me, not by me.'
Lindsey Acree, who said a life sentence 'doesn't even begin to cover it,' drew applause from victims and supporters as she left the courtroom.
Brothers deny the charges one last time
Wearing beige prison outfits, all three brothers addressed the court and acknowledged shame over past behavior while vehemently maintaining they never drugged or raped anyone. 'My brothers and I have never drugged and raped anyone,' Oren Alexander said, as victims shook their heads.
Caproni dismissed the claims outright, saying she believed the denial was 'entirely a lie' and likening the men to Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde — gentlemen in supporters' letters, but 'sadistic, misogynistic sexual predators' in the credible testimony of the women at trial.
A family spokesperson called the March verdict deeply disappointing, according to ABC News.
What comes next for the Alexanders
Beyond prison time, the judge imposed financial penalties: according to NBC News, the twins were ordered to pay $300,000 each in fines and Tal Alexander was fined $350,000, and per ABC News restitution will be determined by attorneys from both sides, with Oren Alexander ordered to pay an additional $50,000 immediately.
All three must complete sex offender treatment approved by the probation office, and may not have contact with anyone under 18 without approval.
Caproni also said she will ask the Bureau of Prisons to consult experts about whether the brothers should be held together, believing they are bad influences on one another.
Sources
- edition.cnn.com › Alexander brothers each sentenced to 30 years for sex trafficking
- nbcnews.com › Alexander brothers, ex-luxury real estate brokers, sentenced to 30 years in prison for sex trafficking
- abcnews.com › Alexander brothers sentenced to 30 years in federal sex trafficking case
- cbsnews.com › Alexander brothers sentenced to 30 years in prison for sex trafficking