CBS 12 News - WPEC published June 23, 2026: Woman lured by fake housekeeping job forced into sex work, deputies say. A California woman who answered a housekeeping ad says she was flown to Florida, stripped of her documents, and forced into a Lake Worth Beach brothel.
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CBS 12 News, Florida local
written by Grace Bellinghausen and Al Pefley
Tuesday June 23, 2026
LAKE WORTH BEACH, Florida — A California woman who answered a housekeeping ad says she was flown to Florida, stripped of her documents, and forced into a Lake Worth Beach brothel.
According to the probable cause affidavit, the woman, originally from San Bernardino, responded to an Indeed ad for a housekeeping position paying $35 an hour with guaranteed housing and transportation to Florida.
The victim told investigators with the Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office that the suspects paid for her flight and arranged an Uber to take her to a home at 1115 S. M Street in Lake Worth Beach on February 17.
Once inside, she met three people:
- 33-year-old Diana Katherine Chaparro Contreras, who introduced herself as "Karen."
- 50-year-old Sandra Luz Peralta Aguilar
- An unidentified man known as "Negro" or "Moreno"
That's when her nightmare began. The victim told investigators the trio took her passport and U.S. work permit and informed her that her job wasn't cleaning houses; it was having sex with clients.
She told detectives that once she was there, she couldn't leave and would be forced to have sex with at least seven men in a single day. She also said that at least one suspect was present when the clients would come and go.
"Well, that is a little bit too close for comfort and kids are in the neighborhood," said Clorine Muhammad, a neighbor who lives near the alleged brothel on South M Street.
Muhammad told us it's unacceptable to have a brothel here in this neighborhood.
"You're living in a residential area. You got people with small kids," she explained.
Many of the clients were violent. The victim told investigators that many men wouldn't use protection and would abuse and choke her. When she begged for mercy, investigators were told her traffickers would threaten her with deportation.
The affidavit highlighted that the home's doors were secured from the outside with a chain and security gate, and the victim's bedroom windows were covered with plywood.
One early morning, she escaped by breaking through the plywood window coverings with a lamp and climbing out a window. And she wasn't alone; she told investigators there was another girl in the home, possibly as young as 15, who she believed was also a victim.
In a follow-up interview, she positively identified Chaparro from a lineup of photographs as the woman she knew as "Karen."
The Investigation
The shocking story gave way to an intense investigation with detectives surveilling the home on M Street for weeks and documenting a steady stream of men arriving and leaving a short time later empty-handed.
Using utility records and rental documents, investigators linked the home to Chaparro. Further surveillance and records later connected Peralta Aguilar to the operation, whom the victim only knew as "Sandra."
But at some point, either because the traffickers caught on or by coincidence, the operation relocated to a different home at 332 S. F Street in Lake Worth Beach.
Two men who were stopped by law enforcement after leaving the properties told investigators they had paid for sex inside the homes, according to the affidavit.
One man said the operation worked by paying an older woman $60 for a token or chip, which was then given to a prostitute in exchange for sex. Another man told detectives there were two women working inside the second location and that a male security guard collected the money.
Investigators also reviewed financial records and found that Chaparro had received or deposited approximately $116,373.70 since March 2025, including nearly $61,000 in cash deposits.
Both Chaparro and Peralta Aguilar were arrested on Friday and booked on counts of human trafficking, profiting from or arranging prostitution, and operating or allowing a location to be used for prostitution.
"If kids are involved, hell, they need to go to jail. They need to be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law," Muhammad said.
Prior Run-in
Previous reporting by CBS12 News indicates Chaparro has ties to two brothers from Guatemala who were arrested last year. Despite their arrests, investigators said the broader network continued operating while associates kept the business running.
In a 2022 Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office report, investigators documented a traffic stop during surveillance of the suspected brothel. Inside a white pickup truck, detectives found Chaparro riding with one of the alleged ringleaders.
Fast forward to this year, investigators say Chaparro had taken a more central role in the operation—until her arrest Friday.
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