Orlando Man, 75, Charged With Human Trafficking

Police say a 75-year-old central Florida man ran a human trafficking ring by recruiting women prisoners and then using them as prostitutes once they were released from prison.
 
Richard Rawles and two associates were charged with human trafficking for commercial sexual activity and deriving support from the proceeds of prostitution.
 
State and local authorities say Rawles recruited female prisoners from the Lowell Correctional Institution State Prison for Women in Ocala. Once they were released, Rawles took them to Orlando, where he forced them to work as prostitutes.
 
Police say the women were given cocaine and heroin, and they weren't allowed to leave their residence unescorted.
 
Rawles told reporters outside the residence where he was arrested that he wasn't a pimp.