POMPANO BEACH, Fla. – Christopher “Chris” Jelavic didn’t know detectives were listening when he told his 70-year-old mother that he was tired of running their criminal enterprise and felt stressed because a woman he had trained for a month had accidentally sent a text message to all of his clients, records show.
The conversation and other incriminating alleged findings were documented in a 100-page Broward County warrant to arrest Jelavic, 48, and his mother, Margareta von Lambert, a real estate broker since 2018.
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Broward Sheriff’s Office Detective Jairo Barrera described how detectives found that the duo’s real estate enterprises and shell companies were created to launder the earnings of a business in the local sex industry.
“Many investigations have been initiated on [Pretty Woman Escorts] however none have been successful at disrupting or dismantling [it],” Barrera wrote.
On Saturday, BSO inmate records showed Jelavic was at the Joseph V. Conte Facility and Lambert was at the Paul Rein Detention Facility. Detectives used public advertising and marketing online, confidential informants, undercover detectives, and surveillance to gather evidence.
According to Barrera, of the BSO money laundering task force, Lambert was the force that pushed her son to become the registered agent of Pretty Woman Escorts, Almost Angels Escorts, and A All Right Now! Escorts Inc.
Detectives identified the corner building at 3311 North Dixie Highway, as the center of operation of Pretty Woman Escorts in Pompano Beach. County records show a corporation related to Jelavic purchased the commercial building in 2005 when he was just 24.
Detectives collected and reviewed the garbage and they monitored the comings and goings of every car and person who visited the property. They described the sex workers as ”young Hispanic and European” women and learned clients paid $400 for an hour with them.
According to Barrera, the sex worker earned 55% and Jelavic received 45%. The men who worked as the sex workers’ drivers also earned about $25 for each trip and traveled to the client’s locations from 6 p.m. to 5 a.m.
To establish the money laundering scheme, detectives identified real estate properties, shell companies, and bank accounts with Bank of America, Wells Fargo, and JP Morgan Chase. They also listed Zelle, credit card transactions, and cash deposits.
Undercover detectives reported investigating real estate listings — including mansions with private pools and tennis courts. The surveillance included communication that detectives believed showed their desire to leave the country to avoid prosecution.
“The desire to purchase property in Croatia hints at plans to move or hide assets internationally,” Barrera wrote, according to the arrest warrant.
Records show deputies arrested Jelavic on Sept. 11 and Lambert on Sept. 12.
Jelavic and Lambert are both facing charges of money laundering and deriving support from the proceeds of prostitution. They will remain in jail until they prove that the source of their bail has nothing to do with the alleged crimes.
If correctional deputies release them on bond, they can’t travel outside Broward or Palm Beach counties. They must turn over their passports, wear a GPS monitor, and abide by all pre-trial release services requirements.