Stabenow's husband caught in Troy prostitution sting, police report saysJennifer Chambers / The Detroit News
April 2, 2008
The co-founder and former CEO of the liberal-progressive Democracy Radio and husband of U.S. Senator Debbie Stabenow was caught in February by a Troy police sting aimed at catching prostitutes, according to a police report.
Thomas L. Athans was stopped Feb. 26 by undercover officers investigating a possible prostitution ring in a room at the Residence Inn near Big Beaver and Interstate 75.
Athans paid a 20-year-old prostitute $150 for sex in a Troy hotel but was not arrested, according to police reports obtained through a Freedom of Information Act request by The Detroit News. The police report said officers observed Athans enter a room under surveillance and leave 15 minutes later. Detectives followed and stopped Athans' silver 2002 Cadillac DeVille on Interstate 75 near Square Lake Road.
Athans told police he stopped at the hotel to see a female friend he met online. After calling her on his cell phone, he was given a room number and met the woman at the door. Once inside he placed $150 on a counter top. The woman collected the money and
performed oral sex on him, Athans told police.
Officers entered the room and found sex toys, condoms, $431 in cash and a laptop computer. They arrested the woman, identified as Alycia Lorraine Martin, and charged her with prostitution. She was released on a $100 bond and has been ordered to appear in Troy District Court for a pre-trial hearing April 22.
In a statement released today through attorney Todd Flood, Athans, 46, said:
"No words can fully express how sorry I am. At the time this incident occurred, I took responsibility for my actions and fully cooperated with law enforcement. My family and I are dealing with this matter in a personal and private way."
Stabenow issued the following statement earlier today:
"This is very disturbing and serious. Obviously it's a deeply difficult and personal matter."
Troy police Lt. Gerard Scherlinck said Troy's undercover officers focus their efforts on breaking up prostitution rings about four times a year, depending upon manpower. During the stings they arrest only the prostitutes.
"(Detectives) stop people coming and going and interview them. If they have a cooperative witness, they will use that person to testify against the ring rather than arrest them. That's what happened in this case," Scherlinck said.
If the case goes to trial, Athans would be called as a witness to testify and positively identify the woman, he said.
"There is no hiding it. You have to write a statement and testify in court and your name appears in a police report," Scherlinck said of the men who are typically interviewed and released in these kinds of cases.
Troy's police spotted an advertisement online at backpage.com, which read "
a young blond hottie here for your total enjoyment" in Troy under the name "Kasey." The posting had rates for 15 minutes ($100) and by the half hour ($160) and hour ($225).
"Those are all red flags for prostitution," Scherlinck said.
After being released, Athans was issued a ticket by Troy police that same day for driving with a suspended license.
Scherlinck said the undercover officers that interviewed Athans did not have a computer that would have allowed them to check whether his driver's license was clear and valid. A check performed later in the evening revealed Athan's license was suspended. A ticket was mailed to his address in Lansing.
Athans appeared in Troy District Court on Thursday where the ticket was reduced to "no operator's license in possession." He paid a $115 fine. His license, which had been suspended from June 25, 2007 through March 11 due to a failure to comply with a judgment in Charlotte, is no longer suspended according to Michigan Secretary of State records.
Athans was executive vice president of Air America, which filed for bankruptcy in 2006. He was also on staff in the U.S. Senate and U.S. House of Representatives.
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