The NYPD pulled off a late-night raid on a sleazy migrant-run brothel along Queens’ infamous “Market of Sweethearts” on Wednesday, officials said.
Cops from the vice squad and the 110th Precinct converged on the Roosevelt Avenue storefront in a lawless stretch of Jackson Heights first exposed by The Post — hauling away both sex workers and customers, police said.
“This brothel was the worst of the worst,” Democratic district leader Hiram Monserrate said. “It operates 24 hours.”
Monserrate, a former state lawmaker, said the sex workers are forced into prostitution to pay off debts of up to $50,000 to human traffickers.
“A large part of the credit for this action goes to the New York Post that has been on this issue,” he said. “The migrant crisis has contributed to the crime — the sheer number who came here in a short period of time. Some of them are part of organized crime rings.”
The Post has published several reports on the seedy strip, where migrant hookers ply their trade while drugs and stolen goods are peddled on the sidewalk in broad daylight — in some cases just steps away from the beleaguered retailers who had the merchandise stolen off their shelves.
The NYPD has pulled off several raids on the block, packing up the stolen goods and shutting down the illegal vendors — only to see the migrant crooks return after police leave.
Merchants told The Post earlier this month that the number of hookers walking the block doubled in recent months, while shoplifters had become increasingly brazen — even threatening shop owners.
“It’s getting worse,” supermarket manager Jesus Diaz said. “It used to be when we catch them stealing, they saying, ‘Oh, I’m sorry, please. I’ll never do it again.’
“Now they’re getting angry. They’re trying to punch you, telling you, ‘You’re going to have a problem.’ Telling you, ‘We’re coming back and you’re going to have some real trouble.’”
More than 200,000 migrants from the US border have flocked to the Big Apple since 2022, with about 65,000 still housed in city funded shelters and tent facilities.