NEW YORK — Retired Wall Street financier Howard Rubin, 70, was arrested on Friday, September 26, 2025, on federal charges of sex trafficking and transporting women across state lines for commercial sex acts. His personal assistant, Jennifer Powers, 45, was also indicted and arrested.
Prosecutors allege that Rubin and Powers operated a nationwide scheme for over a decade, spending at least $1 million to recruit and exploit multiple women, subjecting them to extreme physical and sexual abuse that often went "far beyond the scope of their consent."
'Sex Dungeon' in Manhattan Penthouse
According to a 10-count federal indictment unsealed in Brooklyn, Rubin—a figure known on Wall Street from his days at Salomon Brothers, Merrill Lynch, Bear Stearns, and Soros Fund Management—allegedly used his wealth to lure women, many of whom were financially desperate or had histories of addiction and abuse.
The indictment claims the illicit encounters primarily took place in Rubin's luxury penthouse apartment in Midtown Manhattan near Central Park. The apartment reportedly contained a soundproofed room, which prosecutors described as a "sex dungeon," outfitted with BDSM equipment, including restraints and a device allegedly used to electrocute the women.
Prosecutors stated that the women were often bound and gagged, making them unable to use a pre-arranged "safe word" intended to stop the sexual activity, and that Rubin would ignore their pleas even when they could speak. The indictment further alleges that Rubin provided victims with large quantities of alcohol and drugs, leading to instances of sexual assault while the women were incapacitated.
Exploitation and Financial Scheme
The charges span a period from 2009 to 2019, during which Powers allegedly managed the day-to-day operations of the trafficking network, arranging travel and ensuring the victims signed Non-Disclosure Agreements (NDAs). These agreements purportedly protected Rubin by forcing the women to assume the risk of injury and prohibiting them from discussing the encounters, with a stipulated penalty of $500,000 for a breach.
Rubin also faces a separate charge of bank fraud for allegedly making misrepresentations to a bank while financing Powers' Texas home mortgage.
Previous Civil Litigation
The arrests follow years of civil litigation. In 2022, a civil jury found Rubin liable for sex trafficking and awarded $3.85 million in damages to a group of women, though he has continually denied the accusations.
Rubin was arrested in Fairfield, Connecticut, and Powers was arrested in Texas. If convicted of the sex trafficking charges, both defendants face a maximum sentence of life imprisonment and a mandatory minimum of 15 years. U.S. Attorney Joseph Nocella emphasized that the arrests demonstrate "no one who engages in sex trafficking, in this case in luxury hotels and a penthouse apartment that featured a so-called sex 'dungeon,' is above the law."
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