More than 70 women came forward; brothers convicted on every count

Federal prosecutors on Wednesday asked a federal judge to sentence Tal, Oren, and Alon Alexander to life in prison, arguing that the scale and violence of the sex-trafficking scheme they were convicted of earlier this year warranted the harshest punishment available.

In a court filing made public Wednesday, prosecutors wrote that “the defendants’ scheme to rape and assault their victims was direct in its aim, intricate in its execution and devastating in its effect.”

Jurors earlier this year found the three brothers guilty on all ten counts they collectively faced, including two counts involving minors. During the trial, prosecutors told the jury that the brothers lured women to exclusive parties and homes in the Hamptons, in New York City, and on a cruise, then drugged and raped or assaulted them. Tal and Oren had worked as luxury real-estate brokers, and Alon worked at the family’s private security firm. Oren and Alon, both 39, are twins; Tal is a year older.

Prosecutors noted in their filing that more than 70 women came forward to report being assaulted by the brothers, and 11 testified at the trial.

The Alexanders’ defense argued at trial that while the brothers’ behavior could be aggressive and crude, it did not amount to a federal crime. They said the women opted to join the parties and trips, and that there was no evidence the brothers had drugged the women.

In a sentencing submission, defense attorneys urged the court to impose the 15-year mandatory minimum required by law. They pointed to the brothers’ young children and said the conduct at issue had happened years ago and had stopped before their arrest. “It is hard to imagine a more powerfully punitive consequence than to condemn a new parent to miss the entirety of their children’s childhoods,” they wrote.

Probation officials had also recommended what would effectively amount to life sentences — 195 years for Oren, and 180 years each for Tal and Alon.

The brothers’ lawyers have asked the judge to assign all three to the same prison, citing concerns about prison violence and the brothers’ mental health. “All that Alon, Oren and Tal have to ensure each other’s safety and mental health is each other,” the defense filing said.

Sentencing is scheduled for Oct. 27. The presiding judge has scheduled a separate hearing next week to consider disputed matters, including whether to recommend the brothers be assigned to the same or separate prisons.