FRANKLIN COUNTY — Chambersburg Police have charged a 36-year-old Florida woman with promoting child prostitution, endangering the welfare of children and indecent assault of a minor after they say she allowed her boyfriend to have inappropriate contact with a female victim in her care and encouraged the victim to get into prostitution because “that’s how a woman is supposed to work.”
A 38-year-old Chambersburg man was also charged with indecent assault on a person less than 13 years of age in connection to the case, according to Chambersburg Police.
Venus Denis Rhodes, of Winter Garden Florida, and Andre Maurice Parker, of Chambersburg, were charged in the case after the victim, now 18, told authorities she was sexually assaulted multiple times while living with the suspects in Chambersburg, when she was 12 years old.
The alleged abuses continued until the victim was 16, police say.
According to police, Rhodes was the victim’s caretaker at the time of the alleged sexual assaults, some of which were perpetrated by Parker, who was dating Rhodes at the time.
The victim told police the alleged incidents happened between 2013 and 2016.
Parker, the victim said, would force her to sit on his lap while his penis was erect, watched her while she showered, made her kiss him on the lips and have other kinds of inappropriate contact, which “made her feel disgusting,” according to a criminal complaint affidavit.
When the victim told Rhodes about Parker’s alleged conduct, Rhodes told her she should allow Parker to have sex with her because “that’s what women are supposed to do.”
The victim also alleged that Rhodes encouraged her to become a prostitute and hosted parties where men would come to the house to engage in prostitution. On at least two occasions, the victim told police, Hispanic men entered her bedroom to have sex with her. When the victim told Rhodes about the men, she said Rhodes became upset because she had promised the men they could have sex with the victim.
“This is how a woman’s supposed to work,” Rhodes allegedly told the victim, adding that the victim “needed to get used to it,” police say. The victim said she was encouraged to become a prostitute to help pay the bills, according to police.
Rhodes also allegedly allowed Parker to sexually assault the victim, sometimes while Rhodes was present, the victim alleged.
The alleged abuse continued until the victim moved out of Rhodes’ home at age 16, the victim said.
