Pensioner who ran ‘mature’ sex den disguised as massage parlour told to pay £43k
A PENSIONER who ran a ‘mature’ brothel for nearly a decade has been ordered to pay almost £43,000.
Isabella Qazi, 72, operated the sex den which masqueraded as a massage parlour between 2003 and 2012, hiring older women – including 63-year- old Winifred – to work for her.
But after years of being ‘ discreet’ the police found out about the ground-floor flat on Birkenshaw Street in Glasgow’s Dennistoun and the cover was blown.
Qazi, from Bishopbriggs, near Glasgow, denied the charge of managing the brothel in the East End flat.
She claimed she ran a massage parlour and knew nothing of the extra services that were offered to punters who made appointments.
But the jury at Glasgow Sheriff Court rejected her defence and she was unanimously found guilty.
Sheriff Kenneth Mitchell admonished Qazi after previously deferring sentence for her to be of good behav-
Charged between £50 and £60 for sex
iour. A confiscation order for her to pay £42,973 was also granted.
During her trial the court heard from a number of men who fre-quented the flat over the years. Some were regular customers and went several times a year.
Agnes Stephenson, 57 and Winifred Archibald, 63, who worked at the brothel, also gave evidence at the trial. Miss Stephenson, known as Marie, and Miss Archibald, as Alexis, told the jury Qazi was never involved in the conversations about the extra services.
An advert from the Sunday Sport newspaper shown to the jury advertised the parlour and which woman was working on which day.
A number was attached but the court heard there was no negotiation for sex on the phone – only when the clients reached the flat and were alone with the prostitute in the bedroom.
Intelligence led the police to Birkenshaw Street and Miss Archibald, who is hard of hearing, was in the property when it was raided.
The jury heard that sex toys were found in the property. A man who was leaving at the time of the raid was stopped by police and gave a statement that he had just paid for sex. The court learned that clients were charged between £50 and £60 for sex and that condoms were provided – at no extra cost.
A search warrant was also granted for Qazi’s home, where she lives with another man. Officers found spreadsheets for the years 2010 and part of 2011 which showed client numbers and expenses, including supply costs, for the flat.
Defence counsel Paul Nelson suggested that if around £20 was spent a month on supplies – as was suggested by the spreadsheets – that it would cover the cost of baby oil and other things a masseuse might use and that if condoms were bought it would cost a lot more.
But Harry Findlay, prosecuting, pointed out that for some months more than £100 was spent, and it would be possible that other items were purchased.
Keys for the Birkenshaw Street property were found in Qazi’s home as well as cash, i ncluding £ 900 wrapped in a scarf in her bedroom drawer. When asked by police what the money was for, Qazi, described by her defence as ‘no spring chicken’, claimed it was her funeral money.
Qazi also worked as a secretary of a company called Continuum Scotland between June 2000 and January 2012. She resigned from the firm days after she was caught by police.