Lynn men plead not guilty to running prostitution ring

SALEM – Two Lynn men accused of running a prostitution ring on the North Shore remain in custody after pleading not guilty in Salem Superior Court Monday.Damon L. Hendricks, 33, of 31 Dearborn Ave., #3, and Trevor E. Jones, 30, of 59 Merrill Ave., pleaded not guilty to procuring a person to practice prostitution, deriving support from prostitution and soliciting from prostitution.Hendricks also pleaded not guilty to inducing minors to prostitution and living off earnings from a minor prostitute in connection with the case.Assistant District Attorney Melissa A. Woodard asked Judge Howard J. Whitehead to maintain the same bail as set earlier on Jones of $25,000.In her pitch, Woodard stated the case began in July when an Ipswich woman in her mid 20s, told authorities she met Jones at a party. He apparently recruited her and took her to Boston near the Park Plaza area to perform sexual favors for him on prospective clients.Then they reportedly moved her and the business to the Route 1 area on the North Shore at local hotels and motels along the strip where the sexual favors were performed on clients. Another girl, age 17, and another woman also began working in the motels and from cars performing the sex services. They would call Jones, inform him of the service they were about to perform and the fee charged, Woodard said.The money they earned was apparently turned over to Jones and Hendricks.Authorities also learned that advertisements for their service were placed on Craig?s List on the Internet.On Oct. 1, police raided Jones? motel room at the Holiday Inn in Peabody and seized a computer along with receipts from Craig?s List, Stiletto high heels and other female undergarments.Woodard emphasized the government has a strong case, while noting the commonwealth has three females who have already testified their involvement in the ring.She said Jones has a prior record for prostitution in which he was arrested and charged last year for allegedly prostituting women out of a hotel in Andover.Jones? lawyer William Martin argued for a lesser bail as he cited roots in the area, saying his client was born and raised in Lynn, graduated from Lynn Classical and has a 3-year-old son.He said Jones had been previously romantically involved with the women while maintaining that his client has a “triable case,” saying the complainants have records and drug abuse problems.Martin asked the judge to place Jones on a lower bail, with pretrial probation and a bracelet if needed, but Whitehead declined, saying Woodard?s request was “appropriate.”Bail for Hendricks was set at $75,000 and he remains in custody at the Middleton Jail.Their next scheduled court date is Jan. 25 for a pretrial conference.State Trooper Pi Heseltine spearheaded their arrest and investigation.However, the case is still ongoing, Woodard noted.Hendricks also pleaded not guilty to other charges involving the sexual assault of a 25-year-old woman in Salem on Sept. 28 when he allegedly held a knife to the mother of his 6-year-old child as he raped her in her apartment at 35 Salem St.Police quickly arrested him nearby.As jointly recommended by the prosecutor and defense, Hendricks remains held on another $75,000 on this case, but the defense may seek a bail review at another court hearing for both cases.Hendricks? most recent record goes back to 2001 when he was arrested in May for raping a then 19-year-old Peabody girl at knifepoint in a closet of a Beverly apartment.He pleaded guilty to indecent assault and battery on a person over 14 and two counts of assault and battery with a dangerous weapon and received five years in state prison to be followed by three years of probation. He currently is on probation on the case and the probation department has issued a probation surrender notice to him because of his new arrests.