Eight employees of a Dallas adult bookstore that has been running for two decades have been arrested on charges of conspiracy to commit sex trafficking and human trafficking, the U.S. Attorney’s Office announced on Tuesday.
Montre Lamont Mason, Eileen Mason, Trelynn Love Mason, Aaron Tyrone Betford, Larry Jones, Krishenda Doss, Reginald Rose and Antonio Dario Osorio-Avelar, who managed, controlled, participated in, and operated Paris Adult Book Store, face charges of conspiracy to commit sex trafficking, said Ryan Raybould, U.S. attorney for the Northern District of Texas, said during a news conference on Tuesday.
Some defendants face additional charges including sex trafficking through force, fraud, and coercion; sex trafficking of a minor; and conspiracy to launder money; Raybould said. Six of the eight suspects were arrested on Friday, July 24, and 21 guns were recovered during the operation, federal authorities said.
Adult bookstore rented rooms for commercial sex, feds say
Paris Adult Bookstore, at 11118 Harry Hines Blvd. in Dallas, operated as a sexually oriented business. The front of the store had shelves to sell novelty items, but the back consisted of locked hallways and rentable rooms used to facilitate commercial sex acts and human trafficking, Raybould said.
The store allegedly rented out the rooms and charged additional fees for access. Commercial sex workers would go on what were called “dates” outside the building and pay the fees to enter Paris, authorities said.
“Employees allegedly sold commercial sex workers condoms, sanitary wipes, as well as pregnancy tests,” Raybould said. “They referred to the pimps as money managers and commercial sex workers as queens or ladies of the night.”
Ryan Raybould, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Texas, speaks during a press conference on Tuesday, July 28, 2026, concerning the raid on Dallas’ Paris Adult Bookstore that resulted in federal grand jury indictments against eight defendants. Elvis Martinez-Cartagena FORT WORTH STAR-TELEGRAM
According to the indictment, inside the two private locked hallways are individual “arcade” rooms for customers to watch pornographic movies and engage in acts of commercial sex. The amount paid for the rooms varied and was broken down as $10 to unlock the first door, $5 inserted to a machine activating the in-room video system, and $5 that was used to purchase condoms or wipes, and a remaining amount that would go to tips for employees of Paris, authorities said.
The store is located in an area of Dallas commonly referred to as “the blade” or the “the track,” where commercial sex workers solicit customers by walking along the street, often wearing limited clothing, according to the indictment.
The Paris Adult Book Store is closed in Dallas on July 28, 2026. Elvis Martinez-Cartagena FORT WORTH STAR-TELEGRAM
“They avoided the words pimp and prostitute, but according to the allegations they did not avoid facilitating exploitation and trafficking,” Raybould said. “Paris employees ignored obvious warning signs of the commercial sex workers, some of whom were battered and bruised.”
Rose and Osorio-Avelar used Paris as a hub to traffic commercial sex workers, officials said, and Osorio-Avelar is accused of trafficking three juveniles, while Rose allegedly trafficked an adult victim and gave her a black eye.
Operation Midnight Paris
“These arrests are part of Operation Midnight at Paris, a complex HSI Dallas-led investigation that, over the past three years, exposed one of the longest-running commercial sex trafficking operations in North Texas,” Special Agent in Charge of HSI Dallas Travis Pickard said. “For more than two decades, the Paris Book Store in Dallas allegedly operated under the guise of a legitimate business, while functioning as an illicit property.”
Investigators determined that at the store “human beings were treated as commodities” and over the course of the business’s existence thousands of adults and minors were sold for commercial sex, Pickard said.
“While today’s arrests are significant, it’s important to remember what this case is truly about. It’s about the victims — investigators identified dozens of victims whose lives were forever changed by those who allegedly chose greed over human dignity,” Pickard said. “Some survivors had begun the difficult journey toward healing. Others continue to carry the physical and emotional scars of their exploitation.”
Special Agent Travis Pickard speaks during a press conference on Tuesday, July 28, 2026, concerning the raid on Dallas’ Paris Adult Book Store that resulted in federal grand jury indictments against eight defendants. Elvis Martinez-Cartagena FORT WORTH STAR-TELEGRAM
One of the victims Pickard referred to who did not survive was Caleigha Zangari, a 25-year-old U.S. Army veteran who had become a victim of sex trafficking. She was kidnapped from the Paris Book Store parking lot in August 2024 and murdered by Naasson Hazzard, the Star-Telegram previously reported.
Hazard was sentenced to life in federal prison without parole in June 2025 for the abduction and murder of Zangari. He drove her to East Texas, killed and left her body in a wooded area in Pittsburg, authorities said.
“Human trafficking is not a victimless crime. It destroys families, devastates communities, and it strips people of their freedom, of their dignity, and — in the most tragic cases — their lives. This investigation also sends another important message: Criminal organizations can’t hide behind storefronts, business licenses, or the appearance of legitimacy,” Pickard said.
Special Agent Christopher J. Altemus speaks during a press conference on Tuesday, July 28, 2026, concerning the raid on Dallas’ Paris Adult Book Store that resulted in federal grand jury indictments against eight defendants. Elvis Martinez-Cartagena FORT WORTH STAR-TELEGRAM
“Our agents carefully traced and documented the financial operation and identified how the defendants allegedly worked to conceal and disguise illicit funds by utilizing a point-of-sale system that gave the appearance of legitimate transactions. Cash deposits were commingled with legitimate business income,” Special Agent in Charge of IRS Criminal Investigation Christopher J. Altemus said.
“There’s no longer a Paris Book Store, and we’re going to make sure that Paris Book Store does not come back,” Dallas Police Chief Daniel Comeaux said.
“If you’re thinking about committing crimes in Dallas, you might want to go someplace else because we will catch you,” Comeaux said. “We will put you in jail, and we have individuals and officers that will prosecute you and keep you in jail.”
Daniel C. Comeaux, Dallas chief of police, talks during a press conference on Tuesday, July 28, 2026, concerning the raid on Dallas’ Paris Adult Book Store that resulted in federal grand jury indictments against eight defendants. Elvis Martinez-Cartagena FORT WORTH STAR-TELEGRAM
This story was originally published July 28, 2026 at 2:15 PM.
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Shambhavi covers crime, law enforcement and other breaking news in Fort Worth and Tarrant County. She graduated from the University of North Texas and previously covered a variety of general assignment topics in West Texas. She grew up in Nepal.