How Could You? Hall of Shame-Randy Lambach and Joseph Van Wert
This will be an archive of heinous actions by those involved in child welfare, foster care and adoption. We forewarn you that these are deeply disturbing stories that may involve sex abuse, murder, kidnapping and other horrendous actions.
From Pittsfield, Massachusetts, 45-year-old foster dad Randy Lambach and 65-year-old Joseph Van Wert were arrested for ” allegedly pimped out children in his care””as they ran a prostitution ring from an apartment at a senior living facility in Massachusetts.”
Pittsfield police “held them without bail on charges including human trafficking.
Authorities say Lambach recruited drug addicts from Pittsfield, took photos of them, and posted ads on adult websites,The Berkshire Eagle reports. ”
“Police say he scheduled and drove the women, whom police found to be some of his foster children, to and from meetings with men, seeking clients for sexual services.
He kept anywhere from 50 to 90 percent of the money and sometimes he would take the full profit and pay the woman with a few bags of heroin or some crack cocaine.
Apparently Van Wert used his apartment at a senior living facility as a place to conduct the prostitution and his partner in crime, Lambach, allegedly threatened to turn the women in if they refused to work claiming police would not believe them because they were, ‘drug addicts and wh***s’.
After complaints regarding an apparent increase in prostitution throughout the city police began the investigation in the spring of 2017.
The police conducted patrols interviewing multiple prostitutes on the streets, however many declined to say who ‘tricked them out’.
Police were tipped off after someone gave them the number plate of a blue station wagon, which was allegedly the vehicle used by Lambach to transport the women.
One woman revealed to authorities that she was hired by Lambach for about a year and had sex with him regularly for money or to pay off a debt.
The women’s rates were typically $80 for 30 minutes or between $160 and $200 for an hour and men would contact Lambach via cellphone with a date, time, location.
A witness told police she saw photographs of some of the women and speculated that one woman was as young 15-years-old.
Lambach would either wait outside for the women after dropping them off at appointments or watch from a closet or doorway.
Police also discovered that Lambach used drugs to get the women high before having sex.
Van Wert allegedly paid for sex with the women and was paid by Lambach in cash and drugs for the use of his apartment.
Police decided by November that they had enough probable cause to arrest the men in question.
Lambach was confronted by police November 14 and Van Wert was arrested at his apartment shortly after that.
Van Wert has pleaded not guilty to conspiracy to commit human trafficking, deriving support from prostitution, maintaining a house of prostitution and sexual conduct for a fee.
Lambach has pleaded not guilty in Central Berkshire District Court to four counts of human trafficking.
The investigation remains ongoing and additional charges may be coming, it has not been determined if the men have lawyers or not.
The next hearing is scheduled for November 29.”
[Daily Mail 11/22/17 by Michelle Ganney and AP]
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