Queens Man Accused Of Running Brothels, Selling Fentanyl

JACKSON HEIGHTS, QUEENS — Law enforcement arrested a Jackson Heights man on drug and prostitution charges at a suspected Elmhurst brothel, prosecutors said.

Special agents charged Carlos Medina Palomino, 29, with dealing drugs including cocaine and fentanyl and running two brothels in Queens, including the Elmhurst den where officers arrested him Thursday after he tried to escape through a first-floor window.

Medina Palomino sold nearly 250 grams of cocaine, worth nearly $10,000, to an undercover narcotics investigator from February to April 2019, according to the indictment. He gave the investigator of a free sample of a drug he claimed was heroin, but which a lab test showed was a mixture of cocaine and fentanyl. He also asked for help moving kilograms of drugs from Colombia to the Dominican Republic or Puerto Rico, the indictment says.

Investigators on Thursday found 350 grams of drugs and $6,000 in cash at Medina Palomino’s apartment and the two suspected brothels, according to the NYC Office of the Special Narcotics Prosecutor, which is responsible for felony drug investigations. The alleged brothels are at 94-66 45th Ave. in Elmhurst and 43-22 58th St. in Woodside.

The Jackson Heights man further claimed to have brought women to Queens from Colombia to work in his brothels, according to the charges, and offered the investigator a free encounter with a sex worker.

The indictment follows a long-term investigation by investigators from the Special Narcotics Prosecutor‘s Office and a task force of Homeland Security special agents, NYPD detectives, DEA agents, Customs and Border Protection officers and Coast Guard investigators. The task force, known as BEST, focuses on border-related crimes related to drug smuggling, human trafficking, weapons trafficking or money laundering.

“This man is alleged to have promoted a lifestyle of sex and drugs, using the backdrop of multiple
brothels to sell highly addictive drugs, including drugs laced with fentanyl,” Angel M. Melendez, Special Agent in Charge of HSI New York, said.

“We will continue to work with our partners to arrest and seek prosecution for those who capitalize on the exploitation and weakness of others for profit.”