A woman who operated a bikini coffee stand – yes, it is a thing – in Washington state deposited more than $2 million in her bank in just three years, a local paper reports.
Apparently, her unique business offered coffee with a side of sex.
Last Thursday, Carmela Panico, 52, was charged with promoting prostitution and money laundering. Prosecutors allege that Panico was the madam of drive-through brothels, raking in millions of dollars and laundering the illegal profits through property acquisitions.
According to the Everett Herald, Panico’s baristas told cops the price for a cup of coffee started at $6 and customers typically paid with a $20 bill.
The baristas kept the rest to shake their breasts or expose their genitals. They charged more for sex acts with the droves of men who stopped at the stands, mainly located along Highway 99 in Snohomish County, Wash.
“Panico’s businesses were driven by prostitution and lewd behavior,” Snohomish County deputy prosecutor Bob Hendrix wrote in charging documents.
Panico, who is scheduled to appear in court this week to answer to the felony charges, has been prosecuted in the past for lewd acts at her coffee stands.
In 2011, Panico was caught breaking the law at Java Juggs in Edmonds, Wash. That stand, the paper reports, was equipped with a stripper pole and Panico and others were accused of giving customers sexually explicit shows.
http://www.torontosun.com/2014/08/31/coffee-stands-made-millions-selling-java-and-sex
Apparently, her unique business offered coffee with a side of sex.
Last Thursday, Carmela Panico, 52, was charged with promoting prostitution and money laundering. Prosecutors allege that Panico was the madam of drive-through brothels, raking in millions of dollars and laundering the illegal profits through property acquisitions.
According to the Everett Herald, Panico’s baristas told cops the price for a cup of coffee started at $6 and customers typically paid with a $20 bill.
The baristas kept the rest to shake their breasts or expose their genitals. They charged more for sex acts with the droves of men who stopped at the stands, mainly located along Highway 99 in Snohomish County, Wash.
“Panico’s businesses were driven by prostitution and lewd behavior,” Snohomish County deputy prosecutor Bob Hendrix wrote in charging documents.
Panico, who is scheduled to appear in court this week to answer to the felony charges, has been prosecuted in the past for lewd acts at her coffee stands.
In 2011, Panico was caught breaking the law at Java Juggs in Edmonds, Wash. That stand, the paper reports, was equipped with a stripper pole and Panico and others were accused of giving customers sexually explicit shows.
http://www.torontosun.com/2014/08/31/coffee-stands-made-millions-selling-java-and-sex