In 2011 not one, but two, Sex Tourism operations run by expats in Mérida were brought down.
In one enterprise, an expatriate who went by the name of La Madame was operating a sex-tourism operation in which she lured young women from other countries with the promise of glamorous jobs along the Maya Riviera. Once in Mérida, these women were held against their will and forced into prostitution. “La Madame” was arrested and prosecuted for sex-tourism, operating a prostitution ring and human trafficking.
The other sex-tourism scandal centered on another expatriate who went by the name of John the Match Maker, and who, using a Texas-based charity as a front, brought foreigners to Mérida for sex tourism. John the Match Maker and his associates fled Mérida after abruptly shutting down their clandestine guest house before they could be formally charged.
The sex tourism operation run by John the Match Maker was linked to MELL. John the Match Maker’s websites, “Gay Life in Mérida” and “Villa Azul Mérida” directed sex-tourists to the so-called “Conversations with Friends” held each Monday at MELL.
This is how MELL advertises its Monday evening program: “Conversations with Friends” meets on Monday nights at the Merida English Library. This is an opportunity to practice your Spanish or practice your English in a social setting. You do not have to be a member of the Library to join in… a small donation is taken each Monday evening for “Conversaciones con Amigos”… 7:00 to 9:00 pm at the Library.Calle 53 No. 517, between Calle 66 and 68, Centro.
Investigators have concluded that “Conversation with Friends” was also a meeting place for Mexican hustlers and foreign “Johns.” From MELL they would make their way to the visitors’ hotels or to Villa Azul Merida. Furthermore, this fall, three young men who claim to have been sexually molested by one of MELL’s officers have been located by investigators.
Presently, the FBI in Houston, Texas is investigating the sexual exploitation of minors by current and former U.S. citizens in Mérida.
If you have any information concerning the trafficking of child pornography or the sexual exploitation of under-aged youth by U.S. citizens (and Americans who have renounced their U.S. citizenship to avoid falling under the jurisdiction of U.S. law enforcement), you are urged to contact the FBI office in charge of this investigation:
Stephen L. Morris
Special Agent in Charge
Federal Bureau of Investigation
1 Justice Park Drive
Houston, TX 77092
Phone: (713) 693-5000
E-mail: Houston.Texas@ic.fbi.gov
If you have any information on any Mexican youngster who has been sexually exploited by foreigners, you are urged to contact:
Guillermo Alonso
Director del Investigación y Educación Popular Autogestiva, A.C. (IEPA)
Calle 27 No. 199c between Calle 18 y Calle 20
Col. García Gineres
Mérida, Yucatán
Telephone: (999) 920-6045
Website: http://www.iepaac.org
If you are a witness to a youngster being sexually exploited, you can summon the Police immediately by dialing 066.
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