Coaches accused of sex tourism in São Paulo – 30/09/2024 – Brazil

Two foreign coaches and a Brazilian became defendants after they allegedly promoted a pick-up course in São Paulo in February 2023, inviting women – some under 18 – so their students could put the techniques into practice.

The decision comes from the Federal Court, which accepts a request from the Public Prosecutor’s Office following an indictment by the Civil Police of São Paulo.

The defendants, who deny any wrongdoing, are charged with two crimes: soliciting and sexually exploiting minors, and incitement to prostitution. The sentence ranges from three to six years.

In the petition, the Public Prosecutor’s Office, represented by Michel François Drizul Havrenne, stated that the suspects “received significant financial profits from the sexual exploitation of Brazilian women, in a practice known as sex tourism.”

The only Brazilian involved in the case, Fabrício Marcelo Silva de Castro Junior, had his passport confiscated. The other two are Chinese Ziqiang Ke, known as Mike PickupAlpha, and American Mark Thomas Firestone, identified as David Bond.

They run the Millionaire Social Circle group, which offered courses to men on so-called techniques for picking up women. The organization often promoted pick-up tourism, targeting underdeveloped countries.