Former Wall Street star, ex-Soros financier 'tortured' women in secret soundproof BDSM 'sex dungeon': Feds

A former famed financier with money ties to George Soros is accused of torturing women at a secret BDSM "sex dungeon," according to authorities.

Howard Rubin, 70, used to be a high-profile money manager at Salomon Brothers, Bear Stearns, and Merrill Lynch.

'The defendants allegedly exploited Rubin’s status to ensnare their prospective victims and forced them to endure unthinkable physical trauma before silencing any outcries with threats of legal recourse.'

On Friday morning, FBI agents arrested Rubin at his home in Fairfield, Connecticut.

The United States Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of New York said in a Friday statement, "A 10-count indictment was unsealed today in federal court in Brooklyn charging retired New York-based financier, Howard Rubin, also known as 'Howie' and 'H,' along with his personal assistant, Jennifer Powers, with sex trafficking and transporting women in interstate commerce for sex acts with Rubin."

Federal authorities said Powers became Rubin's personal assistant around 2011 and "managed the logistical aspects of their commercial sex operation."

Federal officials added that Rubin additionally was charged with bank fraud in "connection with misrepresentations made to a bank in the course of financing Powers' mortgage for the Texas home of Powers and her husband."

Powers also was arrested Friday at her home in Southlake, Texas.

The alleged sexual abuse crimes occurred between 2009 and 2019 when Rubin and Powers "recruited multiple women to travel to New York City to engage in commercial sex acts with Rubin involving bondage, discipline, dominance, submission, and sadomasochism, referred to as 'BDSM' sex, and some of the women were trafficked."

ABC News reported that Rubin "lured dozens of women, including former Playboy models, to be sexually and physically assaulted during encounters in his Central Park penthouse in a soundproofed room described in court papers as 'The Dungeon.'"

The feds said the alleged sexual encounters took place at luxury hotels and at Rubin's two-bedroom penthouse apartment in midtown Manhattan, where one of the bedrooms was converted into "what they referred to as a sex 'dungeon' that was painted red, soundproofed, and furnished with BDSM equipment and devices, including a device to shock or electrocute the women."

"During many of these encounters, Rubin brutalized women's bodies, causing them to fear for their safety and/or resulting in significant pain and injuries," the statement says.

"Rubin also used force, fraud, and coercion to traffic another woman in 2018 in Las Vegas, Nevada," the statement reads.

Rubin and Powers are accused of requiring the women to sign nondisclosure agreements, which would "require the women to assume the risk of the hazards and injury of the BDSM encounters with Rubin, prohibit the disclosure of information about the BDSM sex with Rubin, and require the payment of damages in the event of a breach."

Federal investigators said Rubin used the NDAs to intimidate the women, warning of legal action and public humiliation if they pursued legal recourse.

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Joseph Nocella Jr. — interim U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of New York — stated, "As alleged, the defendants used Rubin's wealth to mislead and recruit women to engage in commercial sex acts, where Rubin then tortured women beyond their consent, causing lasting physical and/or psychological pain, and in some cases physical injuries."

Christopher G. Raia — assistant director in charge of the FBI — revealed, "For many years, Howard Rubin and Jennifer Powers allegedly spent at least one million dollars to finance the commercial sexual torture of multiple women via a national trafficking network."

"The defendants allegedly exploited Rubin’s status to ensnare their prospective victims and forced them to endure unthinkable physical trauma before silencing any outcries with threats of legal recourse," Raia said. "The FBI will continue to apprehend any trafficker who sexually abuses others for twisted gratification."

Harry Chavis — acting special agent in charge of the IRS Criminal Investigation of the New York Field Office — noted that the alleged sexual abuse "was not a one-man show."

"While Rubin dehumanized these women with abhorrent sexual acts, Powers is alleged to have run the day-to-day operations of the enterprise and got paid generously for her efforts," Chavis said. "IRS-CI and FBI partnered to see fit that all the facts are detailed in this case and ensure that this pair realizes the full consequences of their ghastly behaviors."

If convicted of sex trafficking, Rubin and Powers each face a maximum sentence of life imprisonment and a mandatory minimum sentence of 15 years' imprisonment. Rubin and Powers face a maximum sentence of 10 years' imprisonment if convicted of transporting women to engage in commercial sex acts.

Rubin faces a maximum prison sentence of 30 years if he is convicted of bank fraud.

Rubin pleaded not guilty in a federal court in Brooklyn.

Rubin's lawyer did not immediately reply to a request for comment from Reuters.

Rubin is a former high-profile Wall Street trader and hedge fund manager who became notorious for making unauthorized trades.

CNBC said of Rubin, "He first gained public notoriety in 1987 for making unauthorized trades at Merrill Lynch, which the firm at the time said contributed to a massive $250 million loss from mortgage securities. Rubin's action at Merrill, which led to his termination, is detailed in Michael Lewis' Wall Street memoir 'Liar's Poker.'"

"Liar's Poker: Rising Through the Wreckage on Wall Street" was written by best-selling author Michael Lewis, known for penning popular books such as "Moneyball," "The Blind Side," and "The Big Short."

The premise of "Liar's Poker" as per Goodreads:

Michael Lewis was fresh out of Princeton and the London School of Economics when he landed a job at Salomon Brothers, one of Wall Street’s premier investment firms. During the next three years, Lewis rose from callow trainee to bond salesman, raking in millions for the firm and cashing in on a modern-day gold rush. 'Liar's Poker' is the culmination of those heady, frenzied years — a behind-the-scenes look at a unique and turbulent time in American business. From the frat-boy camaraderie of the forty-first-floor trading room to the killer instinct that made ambitious young men gamble everything on a high-stakes game of bluffing and deception, here is Michael Lewis's knowing and hilarious insider's account of an unprecedented era of greed, gluttony, and outrageous fortune.

Bloomberg reported that Rubin was described in the book as a "young trader who studied behavioral research into which homeowners were likely to prepay their mortgages."

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