Plea deals to close notorious Wash. strip clubs
Gene JohnsonThree associates of Seattle strip club boss Frank Colacurcio Sr. pleaded guilty Wednesday to racketeering and prostitution charges as part of a deal that will result in four notorious clubs being shut down or demolished.
The plea agreements filed in federal court helped dismantle an adult-entertainment empire that Colacurcio built over the past half-century.
"We are shutting down a corrupt criminal organization that made millions of dollars exploiting women," Seattle U.S. Attorney Jenny Durkan said after the hearing. "These clubs cast shadows far beyond the neighborhoods where they were located."
Assistant Seattle Police Chief Jim Pugel called it the largest organized crime investigation in the department's history. Authorities infiltrated the clubs as employees and customers.
The three associates avoided prison time but agreed the clubs would close by May 5. They turned over their ownership interests to the government and agreed to never again work in the industry in Washington state.
U.S. District Judge Richard Jones accepted the plea deals after closely questioning the defendants and their lawyers about the fine print, including whether the three had the authority to close the clubs when two other defendants — the 93-year-old Colacurcio and his 48-year-old son Frank Jr. — have pleaded not guilty in the racketeering case.
The judge joked about whether the government planned to go into business with the Colacurcios, but defense attorneys assured him the three associates had authority to close the clubs without the Colacurcios' involvement.
Investigators alleged that prostitution was rampant at the clubs — Rick's in Seattle, Sugar's in Shoreline, Honey's in Everett and Fox's near Tacoma. Other criminal activity alleged to have taken place included money laundering and mail fraud.
"These plea agreements reflect serious and detailed negotiations," Jeff Robinson, a lawyer for one of the men, wrote in a court filing unsealed Tuesday. "All parties have made compromises to reach agreements that are fair to the government, fair to the defendants and consistent with the interests of justice."
Honey's will be demolished, and the owners will pay the government the assessed value of the property. Rick's will be turned over to the government. Sugar's has already been shut down, and Fox's also will be shut down.
In all, $4.5 million in property will be turned over to the government, Durkan said.
The men who pleaded guilty were Leroy Richard Christiansen, David Carl Ebert and Steven Michael Fueston. They are owners of limited liability companies that operated the clubs. Two of those entities entered corporate guilty pleas Wednesday.
Christiansen, 67, of Seattle pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit racketeering. Ebert, 62, of Monroe pleaded guilty to conspiracy to use interstate facilities in aid of racketeering. Fueston, 62, of Tacoma, pleaded guilty to the misdemeanor of conspiracy to permit prostitution near a military establishment.
The case could be the final round in Colacurcio Sr.'s six-decade battle with the law.
The son of a King County farmer, he entered the topless nightclub business after making a name for himself in Seattle's pinball industry in the 1950s. He was identified as a racketeer in hearings before a U.S. Senate organized crime committee in 1957 and has periodically served time for racketeering and tax convictions.
Eds: ADDS quotes. CORRECTS Colacurcio's age to 93, sted 92.