Danbury — Bruce John Bemer allegedly played a critical role in a decadeslong prostitution ring involving mentally disabled young men who were lured in with promises of friendship, money and drugs, according to an arrest warrant affidavit.

The 63-year-old Bemer, owner of the New London-Waterford Speedbowl and several other businesses throughout the state, was arraigned on a charge of patronizing a trafficked person Wednesday in Danbury Superior Court in relation to his alleged role in the scheme.

Under state statute, a trafficked person is someone who is illegally compelled to engage in sexual conduct or provide labor or services. The charge is included under the law regarding patronizing a prostitute.

According to court clerks, Bemer was released from custody after posting a $500,000 cash bond Thursday morning. He’s next due in court April 26.

According to the affidavit, written by Danbury Detective Dan Trompetta, Danbury police and the Federal Bureau of Investigation began their investigation into the ring in January last year, just months after one of at least 15 victims told his health care provider about it.

Through their investigation, police said they established Robert King, 50, of Danbury as the alleged ringleader, and Bemer and William Trefzger, 72, of Westport as primary clients.

In interviews with five of the victims, similar stories emerged. King would approach the young men in various places — one said he was collecting bottles from a dumpster when King came to him — and would strike up a friendly conversation, according to the affidavit.

Then, the affidavit states, King would invite the men over to hang out, where they’d smoke cigarettes, use drugs and sometimes play guitar. He’d give the men drugs and tell them they could pay him later, according to the affidavit. Then he’d allegedly introduce them to various clients and suggest that as a way to make money to pay back the debt.

In interviews with police, victims said the sexual encounters allegedly took place all over Connecticut: at hotels, King’s mobile home, Trefzger’s house and several of Bemer’s businesses, including New England Cycle Center in Hartford and Bemer Petroleum in Glastonbury.

Two victims said they also met Bemer at the Speedbowl. One said Bemer would drive him from there to the Glastonbury business, where they allegedly would have sex.

Reached by phone, a Speedbowl employee said he had no comment regarding the case.

The Speedbowl faced various financial issues in the years before Bemer became owner, first falling into foreclosure in 2006. At an auction sale of the track in October 2014, Bemer won with a bid of $1.75 million — a bid at least one creditor said at the time was artificially low. Not long after Bemer received the title to the track in February 2015, he told The Day of plans to replace the track's fencing, modify its bathrooms and perform routine maintenance, including painting.

Scott Gregory, who works in management with the Speedbowl, told racedayct.com that the track is expected to be ready for the season-opening Blastoff Weekend event May 6-7.

Bemer's attorney, John Droney, on Thursday called the case a "sensational" one and said he would not be making any further comments until he reviews all of the facts and information the state has collected. He said he hasn't had a chance to do that yet.

One victim, a man who has schizophrenia and paranoia, said when he first met Bemer, Bemer showed him his collection of old cars and motorcycles in a garage near Bemer Petroleum. The victim told police he had hoped to fly in a helicopter to which Bemer has access, but that never happened.

According to the affidavit, that victim told police he doesn’t believe sex can happen between anyone other than a man and a woman but that others may consider what happened between him and Bemer sex. He said he met Bemer 15 to 20 times.

Another victim, who said he has severe psychological disorders and has been hospitalized multiple times, said King recognized that if the victim was high on cocaine, he would do anything to stay high. The victim told police he believed he wouldn’t have been able to have sex with Bemer and other clients if he wasn’t high.

One told police he overdosed on narcotics while with King in Waterbury and nearly died because King allegedly drove to Torrington before alerting officials to the overdose.

Other victims acknowledged having depression, bipolar disorder and other mental health issues. Most wouldn’t describe exactly what occurred between them and the men who paid them, although one said he had to let Bemer perform a sexual act on him in order to be paid. All of the victims said they met most of the men numerous times. Multiple victims gave police a detailed description of Bemer’s Glastonbury office.

According to the affidavit, the clients paid the young men a certain amount after each encounter — usually about $200 — and the young men would then give a portion of that to King. Until recently, when King began receiving Social Security Disability Insurance, money from the ring was King’s primary source of income, the affidavit states.

Several of the victims, some of whom live in group homes or are hospitalized, wanted police to know they weren’t gay. Some alleged King and some clients threatened to hurt or kill them if they told anyone about the ring. Still more said they were traumatized and still need therapy to help them cope with what had happened.

One victim, identified in the affidavit as victim No. 13, couldn’t be interviewed because he died after leading police on a chase and crashing his car in 2009. In King’s residence, police located a “shrine” to victim No. 13. The so-called shrine isn’t described. Police also found the victim’s state Department of Correction identification card, the affidavit states. With it was a handwritten note with frequent misspellings that read:

“I was doing my aids test. Some of the questions were about sex for drugs sex with men for rent. Whatever. I felt so angry at Bob at myself guilty ashamed and discusted. What hapend was an act of survival I was minibilated and taken advantage of it wasn’t my falt It wasn’t my falt It wasn’t my falt It wasn’t my falt I love my self for who I am and were I am going.” 

Both King and another victim who knew victim No. 13 said they believe his crash was a suicide, according to the affidavit.

When he spoke with police in August 2016, Bemer allegedly said he had known King for 20 to 25 years, during which time King had been arranging for young men to have sex with Bemer for money. According to the affidavit, Bemer first referred to the victims as kids and boys during the interview but then clarified they were in their early 20s.

Bemer, the affidavit states, said he believed King brought him eight to 10 men over the years, most of whom he met on multiple occasions. He allegedly said he sometimes turned King’s offers down because he “was not in the mood” and at least once he stopped having sex with a man because the man “got too old.” According to the affidavit, Bemer’s most recent encounter occurred about four months before the August interview.

Police arrested King on a warrant in August 2016 and charged him with promoting prostitution and tampering with a witness. According to the affidavit, King told police in an interview at the time that he was aware most, if not all, of the victims had some type of psychological disability. King, the affidavit states, told police he is “just a gay guy trying to help people.” He allegedly said he didn’t know he was “causing any harm” by delivering the young men to his clients and that he considers the young men friends.

In a September 2016 interview with FBI Special Agent Kurt Suizdak, Trefzger, who was not in custody at the time, admitted to knowing King and four of the victims, but denied at first that he had had sex with the latter. Then he allegedly said he and the men sometimes would engage in sexual activity. Trefzger, the affidavit notes, is a convicted sexual offender.

Danbury police omitted some details from the affidavit, including other alleged clients named by the victims.

According to court clerks, King is next due in Danbury Superior Court on April 26. Trefzger, who was arrested Wednesday and charged with patronizing a trafficked person, is scheduled to appear in the same court April 10. Both men remain in custody.

l.boyle@theday.com