Police Bust Expensive Prostitution Ring

An international prostitution ring that charged wealthy clients in Europe and the United States up to $5,500 an hour for the body of their choice was stripped of its high-class veneer with the arrest of four organizers, prosecutors announced Thursday.

Charges were unsealed in Manhattan accusing the four of participating in a prostitution ring that called itself Emperors Club VIP from at least December 2004, U.S. Attorney Michael Garcia said.

On its Web site, the company displays photographs of the prostitutes' bodies, with their faces hidden, along with hourly rates depending on whether the prostitutes were rated with one diamond, the lowest ranking, or seven diamonds, the highest.