A Tucson couple says police disregarded repeated complaints about a suspected brothel in their neighborhood, leading to the wife being assaulted by a man who ran the business.
For her injuries and their distress, Chris and Annemarie Rechlin filed a claim saying they intend to sue the city of Tucson for $2 million.
The Rechlins say they were among several neighbors who complained about a house on North Stone Avenue near Tucson Mall. The Tucson Police Department acknowledges it has responded to at least 12 calls to the property over three years ending in February.
βWe had one guy even walk in our back door looking for the βmassage parlor,β β the coupleβs notice of claim says.
The Rechlins contend police were slow to respond because officers were among the brothelβs clients. TPD declined several requests from the Arizona Daily Star to respond to the allegation and has refused to produce most of the public records the newspaper sought in the weeks following a raid on the property.
The city managerβs office released a statement last month acknowledging that several officers were suspended and are being investigated by the Arizona Department of Public Safety β but officials refused to discuss the nature of the investigation.
What the Star has been able to determine based on court documents is that for three years authorities had been investigating a possible prostitution ring, which included four houses and two businesses. On Jan. 27, two months after the alleged assault on Annemarie Rechlin, police raided three properties used by the prostitution ring and a house belonging to the couple they suspected were running the operation.
Confidential informants and Clarissa Lopez, one of the alleged owners, told an undercover officer about the operation and her expectations of employees: a $40 βcutβ for each sexual service performed, says a search warrant affidavit filed in advance of the raids.
Although no one has been charged, Pima County has refused to return items seized that day, contending the homes that allegedly housed illegal prostitution businesses β and whatβs inside β is investigative evidence. Among the assets still in custody: a house, two vehicles and hundreds of other items including womenβs costumes, go-go boots, stripper poles and 14 pairs of Victoriaβs Secret panties.
dramatic confrontation
The incident with the Rechlins occurred on Nov. 22. A police report says Ulises Ruiz β who with Lopez owns the two businesses suspected of being part of the prostitution ring β accused the Rechlins of trespassing and ordered them off the Stone Avenue rental property.
The couple say they had been photographing license plates of cars parked outside the house, noting expensive vehicles that seemed out of place in their working-class neighborhood. They had given the photographs to police several times, they said.
βThese included high-profile vehicles such as Hummers, Mercedes, and a Maserati all the way down to Hondas and motorcycles. One vehicle, a truck, even had a Tucson Fire Department emblem on it,β the Rechlins wrote in their notice of claim against the city.
The notice says that Ruiz hit Annemarie Rechlin on the shoulder with a βbat or pipeβ in an attempt to take away the iPhone the couple was using to take pictures. Police did not initially document the injury and she was not offered medical care, the notice says.
βRechlin was never asked if she wanted to have her injuries checked by medical personal (sic) her injuries were never even looked at by the responding officers,β the notice adds.
Ruiz admitted having the bat in his hand for protection but denied using it, the police report says.
The Rechlins, Ruiz and Lopez all called 911.
An attorney representing Ruiz declined to discuss the case with the Star.
The Rechlins say one reason for their claim against the city was the rude and unprofessional behavior they received that night. Both were initially detained by police.
Annemarie Rechlin was read her rights, placed in a patrol car and swabbed for DNA before she and her husband were released, their notice of claim says. Since then, Annemarie Rechlin says she has severe anxiety, trouble sleeping and more migraine headaches, causing her to take time off from work.
The Rechlins did not respond to the Starβs requests for an interview.
No arrests were made that night, but a warrant issued the following week accused Ruiz of one count of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon. He was taken into custody several weeks later when he showed up at a police substation to get a vehicle out of impound, a police report says.
He was released from jail the following morning, after Lopez fed $15,000 cash into an automated bail machine in the jailβs lobby for nearly an hour, says a search warrant affidavit filed before the January raid. Ruiz rejected a plea agreement offered by the Pima County Attorneyβs Office, and is scheduled for trial later this year.
off-the-books income
Tucson police received complaints and began investigating a massage business called By Spanish more than three years ago, the search warrant affidavit says. The warrant does not identify the complainants.
By Spanish advertised on Backpage.com and operated out of five locations. Ruiz and Lopez also owned two businesses, a salon and a pet store, police suspect were used to launder money, the search warrant affidavit says.
When police questioned Ruiz at the time of his arrest, he told them the massage business was legitimate and he earned his money as a pet shop owner, the police report says. But records from the state Department of Economic Security show no reported income from either Ruiz or Lopez, βwhich is uncommon among those who earn income from a legitimate source or business, but common among those who are involved in cash businesses such as illegal massage/prostitution,β the search warrant affidavit says.
After Ruiz was released from jail, he continued to manage By Spanish for the month leading up to the January raid, the affidavit says. But with no charges leveled almost four months later in connection to the raid, Lopez made a claim to get her property back, including the $15,000 she used to bail Ruiz out of jail. Even though the bond money wasnβt seized during the raid, prosecutors assert that because she acquired it through criminal means, the money is also subject to forfeiture.
In their May 8 response to Lopezβs claim, prosecutors said items taken during the raid are evidence in a police investigation.
Wells Fargo, Lopezβs mortgage holder, has also filed a claim for the property, asking to be paid if it is sold.
βWells Fargo is an innocent lender ... not knowingly taking part in an illegal transaction,β its claim reads.
Lopezβs attorney could not be reached for comment.
Meanwhile, the Rechlins say they no longer feel safe in their home or walking down their street.
βThe Tucson Police Department and its officers should be (held) accountable for their actions, as well as their inactions,β the Rechlinβs claims against the city says. βWe were taught to trust the police officers, that they are there to help us as long as we obey the laws. A breach of that trust is devastating, and inexplicable.β
