Alexander brothers each sentenced to 30 years in prison for sex trafficking case
The three brothers were found guilty of drugging and raping several women over the course of decades.
Alexander brothers each sentenced to 30 years in prison for sex trafficking case
Three brothers, including two wealthy real-estate moguls, have each been handed 30-year prison terms for drugging and raping dozens of women over several decades.
Tal Alexander, 40, and twins Oren and Alon Alexander, 39, were convicted in March of using their wealth and social standing to draw women to parties and luxury homes, where they sexually assaulted them.
On Tuesday morning, a New York court heard from 12 victims, including one who had not testified at trial, about the psychological harm they suffered after being raped by the Alexander brothers and their wish that the shame they felt would instead be placed on the defendants.
Many urged the judge to give each brother the maximum sentence of life in prison.
Maya Miller told the court that after Tal Alexander raped her in 2014, she no longer felt safe.
"I carry a quiet funeral within me for the person I might've become if this never happened to me," she said.
Another victim, who used the pseudonym Isa Brooks, said that after Tal and Alon Alexander raped her when she was 16, she lost the ability to trust herself.
"I had no idea the danger I was in til it was too late," she said.
Another woman said that when she planned to speak out about being raped, Tal Alexander threatened that he knew where her sister worked.
As the women spoke, the three Alexander brothers showed little emotion. They looked ahead or spoke quietly with their lawyers, who said they had advised their clients not to look at the victims while they were speaking so it would not be misread as staring.
Prosecutor Elizabeth Espinosa said the brothers deserved the harshest punishment for their crimes, saying the evidence in the case "paint a truly devastating picture".
"For years, they honed their methods of luring women with the promise of luxury," she said, adding that they were "completely unmoved by the path of suffering they left behind them."
During the five-week trial, 11 women — including several who said they were minors at the time of the assaults — testified that the brothers gave them gifts and flew them to places including Aspen and the Bahamas, where they were given drugs before being raped.
Prosecutors said the brothers' pattern of abusive behaviour began in high school, although the trial focused on crimes dating back to 2008.
They accused the three of slipping drugs into women's drinks and said they "physically restrained and held down their victims during the rapes and sexual assaults and ignored screams and explicit requests to stop".
Lawyers for the brothers argued that the sex was consensual and that they were womanizers, not sexual abusers. They pushed for the minimum sentence for the brothers, 15 years.
Two of the brothers, Tal and Oren, made their money selling luxury properties in New York and Miami.
They worked for American real estate giant Douglas Elliman, selling homes for celebrities including Lindsay Lohan, Kim Kardashian and Kanye West. In 2022, they launched their own New York-based firm, Official. Alon worked at the family's private security company, Kent Security.
As the sentences were read, the brothers did not react or show emotion, staring straight ahead.