Anna Gristina, accused of being a madam on Manhattan’s Upper East Side, is seen in wedding photos taken 10 years ago during her marriage to Kelvin Gorr. (credit: Facebook/Kelvin Gorr)
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) — More is being learned about the accused East Side madam, and how she ran her alleged brothel.
CBS 2 has obtained images of Anna Gristina, 44, from her wedding day in Las Vegas a decade ago. They are in quite a contrast from her appearance in court on Tuesday.
A former madam said Wednesday that Gristina had quite a reputation in the business.
“She tended to be, sort of old school, kept a low-key profile, kept everything pen and paper, so I doubt there’s much of a paper trail,” Kristin Davis told CBS 2’s Tony Aiello.
Davis once procured prostitutes for former New York Gov. Eliot Spitzer.
Davis said Gristina had a reputation for offering a rotating cast of beautiful young women — from the United Kingdom and Europe.
“Dutch girls and London girls come here for a month, work, go back home. She was known for having more of the transient girls,” Davis said.
The Manhattan district attorney says Gristina ran an erotic empire from a nondescript building on East 78th Street. The indictment charges her with promoting prostitution, includes a co-defendant whose name has been blacked out.
Jaynie Mae Baker (credit: cassworld.ning.com)
Multiple media outlets identify the co-defendant as “Jaynie Mae Baker,” a model who once worked for a high-end matchmaking service. She’s now reportedly being sought by police.
David Spence Walker, the name of the Morgan Stanley banker Gristina met with on the day of her arrest is also out.
“She was trying to set up a website that would rival match-dot-com,” defense lawyer Peter Gleason said.
Gleason said Gristina was seeking legitimate funding for an Internet business.
At her home in Orange County on Wednesday, Gristina’s husband, Kelvin Gorr, drove off in his Range Rover without comment.
Davis said if the district attorney is correct — and Gristina made millions over a decade or more — it was truly “risky business.”
“To be in business for 10, 15 years, one, means you’ve got somebody tipping you off, and, two, means you’re a little bit delusional. This isn’t a profession. It’s quick money. Get in, get out,” Davis said.
Davis said several prostitutes who once worked for her also worked for Gristina, who she claims had a bad reputation for taking 75 percent of the fee, instead of the usual 50 percent.
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