1927, or by email at [emailprotected], 2021 Portsmouth Daily Times, all rights reserved. He said the affidavit is based on nameless, confidential informants trying to get deals for lower sentences, trying to set him up. . 2023 USA TODAY, a division of Gannett Satellite Information Network, LLC. Supreme Court of Ohio. What happens to these girls, they get these little girls or little boys, thats what really gets me, and they take them and start giving them drugs, get them hooked, and take them when they are 16 when they are still pretty and then they are done with them and most of them just die. Efforts by The Enquirer to unseal the investigatory file and court records have been unsuccessful to date. Because youre a part of it and no one wanted to listen to people.. Mearan said he saw a news story about Jeffrey Epstein. Him and Harvey Weinstein. The documents stem from a complaint Phil Malone filed against Municipal Court Judge Steven Mowery over his firing. I am still actively investigating the case whenever I get any new potential leads. His brother and former city probation officer Phil Malone was recently charged with a felony. One said she had slept with a former police chief for money. He said he was running for re-election for what would wind up being the last time when she went missing. Administrative Director. 2023 www.cincinnati.com. It was a lot.. If I know an attorney is breaking the law in any way I have to contact the disciplinary council.". blue michael 201 ohio dr bryan, oh 43506: . He. Columbus, Ohio Search Background Check Lion's Den Business Data 3015 Morse Rd, Columbus, OH 43231, United States (614) 475-1943 customer_service@lionsden.com www.lionsden.com AllBiz Business Profile Background Search Michael F. Moran Coworkers at Lion's Den (2) Dorothy Simpson So, he reached out to them first. Portsmouth is a city in and the county seat of Scioto County, Ohio, United States. At least he died publicly charged for his crimes, and his victims knew the dignity of being heard and believed. Im assuming shes dead or hiding out. I think positive.. I live one day at a time. PORTSMOUTH, Ohio - A former city councilman and practicing defense attorney rumored to be a player in a sex trafficking ring was detained by police while officials searched his home Wednesday. Mearan was a central figure in a 2019Enquirerinvestigative reportintosex trafficking in Portsmouth, a city just over 100 miles east of Cincinnati along the Ohio River. This was in 2000, when Mills was still 15. I can still work, just cut back and theres less because of the virus anyway.". Im so angry. Records show that Mearan had represented six of the women facing drug charges. Blankenship wrote an article based on this information, but it never saw the light of day. Year. Mearan was eventually arrested in 2020 and charged with multiple counts involving sex trafficking. He feels really bad about it, Marshall said of Mearan. A prominent Ohio lawyer, who has been accused of being involved in a sex trafficking ring, was detained after dozens of FBI agents and local law enforcement officers raided his home Wednesday morning. Mark was a 1980 graduate of Clay High School, enjoyed rebuilding old. And so they came in the hotel room, they searched it and they told her you need to get Angie back to wherever you met. View Details. "His victims were utterly powerless," Yost said. Mills is one of four women to accuse Malone or his brother,Mark Malone,of inappropriate sexual conduct or exchangingsexual favors for light treatment from the Portsmouth City Probation Department, where they both worked. I cant imagine if one of my daughters disappeared. One said she had slept with a former police chief for money. She said coming forward will help her recover,and hopefully others. Mike Mearan, he just leaves a bad taste in your mouth and you want to brush your teeth real quick.. Agents with Ohio Bureau of Investigation recently raided his home, which also serves as his office and is across the street from the Scioto County Courthouse. Apparently, he runs drug and prostitution rings. The case remains open. PORTSMOUTH, OH (WOWK) Following the death of accused sex trafficker Michael Mearan, former journalist Nikki Blankenship is sharing her involvement in shedding light on the accusations. Around here, you cant trust the cops, some of them. Mearan denied all charges against him and pleaded not guilty in court in October 2020. He was the owner and operator of Bob's Appliance. Records show that Mearan had represented six of the women facing drug charges. At the time of her disappearance, Megan Lancaster - who once was a talented athlete with a softball scholarship to school - was using drugs and prostituting. PORTSMOUTH, Ohio (FOX19) - A Portsmouth lawyer and former city council member under state investigation is linked to prostitution, sex trafficking and the drugs, federal court records show. Mearan ruined me, Phil Malone said. The letter did not specify what illegal activity was being investigated. Portsmouth attorney Michael Mearan has been indicted on 18 felony counts related to human trafficking spanning 15 years. The subcommittee thanks you for your four decades of service to our country and congratulates you on a well-deserved retirement. Mearan, 74, faces 18 charges including . Mills said she met Phil Malone while accompanying her mother as she cleaned houses. Tune in later tonight on @WOWK13News for an exclusive interview with someone whose been following the case from the beginning. Marshall retired suddenly in 2018 after a 16-year career as a common pleas court judge as well as running the Scioto County Drug Court through his courtroom. Party Affiliation: Republican Party. Linda Mills, 35, was promised a modeling contract in Chicago by Phil Malone, former Scioto County sheriff's deputy and dispatcher, only to be sex trafficked at the age of 15. A federal agent filed it under seal to get permission for a wiretap in a drug case involving one of Mearans former clients, according to a copy of it. Mearan pointed out he was not charged then and is not charged now. They took a little piece of us that we cant replace.. She began posing nude for Phil Malone, who soon said he had lined up a modeling contract for her in Chicago. I dont want to speak bad about the dead, but she lived a rough life. Ive been through hell. When we asked if he had a lawyer, he responded: He who represents himself has a fool for a lawyer, but I havent been charged with anything. Mike Moran Attorney, Portsmouth, Ohio. "We would be acquaintances in the fact of being active in the local criminal justice system for many years. We are no longer accepting comments on this article. I think the only connection they can make between Mike and me is drug court. Portsmouth attorney under state investigation for sex trafficking indicted, Sam Hubbard micd up during 98-yard TD: Cant catch me!, Malicious actions prompt closure of beloved NKY bar, owner says, Cincinnati police officer's career to end with criminal convictions, Sheriff IDs woman shot to death in Clermont County, releases motive, Man fatally hit on Ohio 129 in Butler County, rumors of sex trafficking in the southern Ohio city. Mearan said BCI agents broke his front door down about 8 a.m. Wednesday, March 25, shined a flashlight on him and told him to put his hands up. Mike is a state-certified firearms instructor/firearms safety officer in Ohio for law enforcement officers and private security personnel, as well as being a factory-trained Glock Advanced Pistol Armorer. I dont want to talk bad about her., He also said: "She had a lot of enemies. There have been no arrests. Mearan would have faced more than 70 years in prison if convicted on all counts. Ive had disgruntled clients before, but nothing like this.. Then, under a plea deal like those offered other first-time offenders, the charges were dismissed. He used to use that hot tub to lure girls there, Mills said. Im so blessed. Federal officials received complaints for years about Michael Mearan being involved in prostitution and sex trafficking, a federal record shows. He was a dispatcher for the Scioto County Sheriffs Office at the time. Michael S Moran. Mills said the Chicago experience left her hooked on crack and then opioids. Yost told The Enquirer a that Scioto County grand jury indicted Mearan on all the charges they were presented with Friday morning, and an arrest warrant was secured afterward. I welcome it, he said of the investigation. She wonders why Megan had his phone number. She was introduced to Mark Malone, who was the chief probation officer at the time. 2023 www.cincinnati.com. He said they were there for more than eight hours. According to his personnel file, Phil Malone was hired by the Scioto County Sheriffs Office in 1989 and staffed dispatch for all of his career there due to his poor eyesight. Im not taking any chances. The abuse lasted for years. It indicated they were searching for telephone records, call history, all communications, credit cards and debit cards regarding grooming, sexual activity, pandering for sexual activity, travel arrangements, he said. Sen. Sherrod Brown weighs in on sex trafficking in Ohio. Look what youve caused. None of it is true: Portsmouth attorney under state investigation speaks out. When we reached out to the Ohio Public Defenders Office about Mearan, we received this response from their chief legal counsel: We do not have information we can share at this time and we are awaiting the disclosure of more information related to Atty. December 29, 2022. ", I think other than breaking my door down and putting handcuffs on me, they were just doing their jobs, he said. Michael J. Moran, age 83, of Indianapolis (formerly of Dublin, Ohio), passed away Monday, November 7, 2022. Trapped and trafficked:Officials in small Ohio town accused of sex trafficking underage girls. Weve had him for years for an attorney. The charges stemmed from criminal activity that allegedly occurred from 2003 and 2018 and involved six female victims. That would be correct in definition. I went to jail and did six months in the county and I got a 9-year prison sentence out of. They know Im not that kind of person.". Portsmouth police guarded the perimeter of the house, blocking the streets around it off to vehicles and pedestrians. We also wanted to try to confirm what Mearan told us about their conversation and how thorough the police investigation had been. Things came to a head a few years later, when Lawhon said Mark Malone had her arrested out of jealousy after she started dating someone else. I asked what did she do? He got snappy with me. 'Are you serious? PORTSMOUTH According to Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost, Portsmouth lawyer and former city councilperson Michael Mearan has died. Michael W Moran. She is still missing to this day. Ten women previously told The Enquirer they had worked as prostitutes for Mearan, with several of the women saying they had traveled to numerous states to have sex at his behest over the last two decades. Please consider following us by clicking below. Right before we went in to court, I called the sergeant an a--hole. 6y Mike Moran has been a center piece in this area for awhile. Select the best result to find their address, phone number, relatives, and public records. She remembers being there when he picked Mills up for the first time, saying he was manipulative,with promises of making $2,000 a week. It was cold. Yost said now that Mearan has been charged, other victims may feel safe enough to come forward. I said Could I get a jacket? They said We cant just yet. Jax the Staffy is rescued after being stuck in a cave for two days, Rapidly growing cemetery filled with Vladimir Putin's 'prisoner army', As it happened: UK Government blocks Scotland's new gender law. Age: 60 (born . I think its awful. Police detectives began looking into Mearan in late 2018, about the same time our news partners at the Cincinnati Enquirer began reporting on rumors of sex trafficking in the southern Ohio city. Ive always been very modest of my body (but) I was strung out on OxyContin and whatnot, Artressia said. Columbus, OH 43215-3431. All the charges are felonies. We checked with the Cincinnati office of the FBI and U.S. Attorneys Office for the Southern District of Ohio. I inherited the case when he moved on to become a school resource officer in January of 2014 and I was assigned to the detective bureau. They have survived him, the attorney general tweeted Friday. ", Prostitution: Its against the law. 'It's not that we weren't trying':Why it took decades to arrest Michael Mearan. Read More. He is 14 now and is being raised by his grandparents (Megan Lancasters mother and father). She said she would meet Mark Malone in different locations away from the office. Yost said he believes the organization and power involved in this case makes it an outlier, but emphasized that human trafficking as a crime is common. He said his family is the most important thing to him. She said she was friends with Megan Lancaster and then felt she set her up to buy two 80-milligram OxyContin pills from her at a hotel in Portsmouth. All rights reserved. If Megan Lancaster was an informant, I would not be aware as it is likely it would have been a confidential status for our drug task force. Oh my God, the dirty things he would say to me when I would be doing community service, Lawhon said from prison, where she is serving a three-year sentence for theft from the elderly. Mike Mearan was not running a human trafficking ring by himself. Notifications can be turned off anytime in the browser settings. He said he was impressed by the six women who are already a part of the case for their strength and resilience. She told us her name was Angie Compton and she cleaned his house on Mondays. Not once did I ever think he would steer me wrong. Because I think the victims are preyed upon for their drugs habits or whatever, I dont know. According to the affidavit, Mearan was connected to more than two dozen women who worked for him as prostitutes, including one who has been missing for seven years as of Friday, and another found dead of multiple traumas.". It was not just a couple. "No ones ever believed me," Mills said. I know nothing is there. from Georgetown University Law Center. Her childhood was robbed from her, said one of Mills former grade school teachers, who asked to remain anonymous because of her school districts privacy policies. Youve caused so many people to die. Thatopened an investigation by the Ohio Public Defenders office into Marshalls conduct and whether the results in as many as 3,000 criminal cases he oversaw should be reexamined. They were very professional.. "The case was originally assigned to then-Detective Ron Davis. Ive never had a prostitute in my life, I swear on my mom - and shes still alive - or paid for anybody else to have sex, he said in a phone interview. Thats what a person who cares about someone does. Ohio AG seeks info on Portsmouth attorney amid reports of sex trafficking investigation. Drugs, sex trafficking and missing women:Small Ohio town haunted by dark allegations. I was targeted, he said. One page lists Mearans name and phone number next to $80.. She thinks Mearan was involved somehow or knows what happened. Megan lured her down to a hotel in Portsmouth and bought drugs from her and when she left the police were waiting on her. Voter Status: Active. Megan Lancaster kept a black notebook with names and phone numbers among pages that have dance for and men who give money, written on them, according to Kadie Lancaster and a copy she provided to us. The next day Blankenship was contacted by other media outlets, which led to more exposed secrets in the city of Portsmouth. Im 74 years old, home like Im supposed to be, and youre doing this during this virus situation?. 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