CAREY COLEMAN’S
SECRET SEX
SOCIETY
Ohio congressional candidate Carey Coleman was a member of an elite secret fraternity tied to a long history of human trafficking.
CAREY COLEMAN’S TIES TO
THE ORDER OF JESTERS
A new report links Ohio congressional candidate Carey Coleman to a secret society whose members have been implicated in human trafficking, sex tourism and other criminal activity.
Carey Coleman appears on two historical membership rosters for the Royal Order of Jesters. The documents, dated April 2007 and February 2008, identify “Coleman, Carey” under Cleveland Court No. 14, according to independent research.
The Royal Order of Jesters is a private fraternal organization whose members gather at invitation-only events known as “Books.”
The organization has a long and controversial history in America. Members have faced federal investigations and criminal charges involving human trafficking, sex tourism and allegations of RICO and other crimes. These criminal activities have been documented in connection with some of the Jesters’ private gatherings, held at ranches, lodges and country clubs.
A major federal investigation began in 2007, during the period when Coleman reportedly appeared on the organization's membership rolls.
Jesters are sometimes referred to as “Big Boys,” and their private gatherings, known as “books,” are a central part of the fraternity's traditions.
Independent researchers have identified Coleman on the historical membership lists.
The organization has a long and controversial history in America. Members have faced federal investigations and criminal charges involving human trafficking, sex tourism and allegations of RICO and other crimes. These criminal activities have been documented in connection with some of the Jesters’ private gatherings, held at ranches, lodges and country clubs.
A major federal investigation began in 2007, during the period when Coleman reportedly appeared on the organization's membership rolls.
Jesters are sometimes referred to as “Big Boys,” and their private gatherings, known as “books,” are a central part of the fraternity's traditions.
Independent researchers have identified Coleman on the historical membership lists.
SEX, SECRETS & THE JESTERS
Inside the invitation-only fraternity where federal investigators uncovered prostitution arrangements, and former members alleged decades of sexual misconduct.
For more than a century, the Royal Order of Jesters has operated as an exclusive fraternity. Its membership has included businessmen, judges, attorneys, prosecutors and law-enforcement officials. Behind the fraternity's elaborate costumes, unusual rituals, and devotion to “mirth,” however, lies a documented history of prostitution at some of its private gatherings.
A federal investigation beginning in 2007 exposed criminal conduct involving prostitution at Jesters events. Federal proceedings documented arrangements to transport women across state lines and international borders for commercial sex. Retired New York Supreme Court Justice Ronald Tills admitted arranging prostitutes for Jesters gatherings over several years. Other members pleaded guilty to offenses involving transportation for prostitution or concealment of criminal conduct.
In a 2009 investigation, The Buffalo News interviewed former Jesters who described prostitution at gatherings long before federal prosecutors brought their cases. Malcolm “Mutt” Herring, a former member from Alabama, told the newspaper that prostitution-related activities had been occurring for 40 to 50 years. Herring said he had left the organization more than two decades earlier because he objected to its activities. Another former member, J. L. Edwards of South Carolina, described what he witnessed during his seven years in the fraternity before leaving in 1998. Edwards told the newspaper that sexual performances took place at some gatherings. He also described off-duty police officers controlling access to private rooms.
In 2007, the allegations became the subject of a federal criminal investigation.Federal authorities uncovered arrangements in which women were transported across state lines and international borders to provide commercial sexual services at Jesters gatherings. The investigation documented activity involving events in New York, Kentucky, Pennsylvania, Florida and Canada.
Among those prosecuted was Ronald H. Tills, a retired New York Supreme Court justice and Jesters member. Tills admitted arranging prostitutes for Jesters gatherings over several years, including transporting women to events outside New York.
In August 2009, the former judge was sentenced to 18 months in federal prison and fined $25,000. Michael R. Stebick, a former prosecutor and court law clerk, pleaded guilty to conspiracy involving interstate transportation for prostitution. He received home confinement, probation, community service and a fine. John Trowbridge, a retired police captain from Lockport, New York, admitted transporting a woman to a Jesters gathering in Kentucky for prostitution. He received probation. Michael Lesinski, a former Erie County sheriff's deputy, admitted transporting women to a 2005 Jesters convention in Niagara Falls, Ontario, where paid sexual activity occurred. He pleaded guilty to concealing a felony after failing to report the criminal conduct
The convictions documented criminal activity involving several members of a fraternity whose ranks included people entrusted with enforcing and interpreting the law.
The controversy surrounding individuals associated with the Jesters also extended overseas.
In Brazil, authorities investigated allegations that underage girls were sexually exploited in connection with Amazon fishing tours organized by Jester member and businessman Richard Wayne Schair. Investigative reporting by The Frontier identified 19 Royal Order of Jesters members in connection with the fishing-tour controversy.
Representatives of the Royal Order of Jesters have disputed suggestions that prostitution was officially sanctioned by the organization. The federal convictions established wrongdoing by specific individuals, not the fraternity's entire membership.
“WET-A-LINE” TOURS
A luxury fishing-tour company, allegations involving girls as young as 12, and reported connections to members of the Royal Order of Jesters.
The trips were advertised as fishing adventures in the Brazilian Amazon. But investigators and alleged victims described something far more disturbing: young Brazilian girls recruited to accompany wealthy foreign tourists aboard luxury boats.
At the center of the allegations was Wet-A-Line Tours, a company operated by American businessman Richard Wayne Schair.
According to Brazilian authorities, the company worked with local tourism operators to organize fishing expeditions along the Amazon. Investigators alleged that girls and young women from impoverished communities were recruited to accompany foreign visitors and subjected to sexual exploitation.
A 2011 Brazilian government statement identified 15 alleged victims and described an investigation that began in 2008. Authorities said the trips involved luxury vessels and arrangements that allegedly concealed sexual exploitation behind the appearance of sport tourism.
The allegations also reached American courts.
In June 2011, four Brazilian women filed a federal civil lawsuit in Georgia against Schair and Wet-A-Line Tours. They alleged that, while they were minors, they were recruited and coerced into sexual acts with Schair and his customers.
Court records describe allegations that the plaintiffs were between 12 and 17 years old when recruited.
The reported connections to the Royal Order of Jesters extended beyond Schair.
A historical account of Brazilian court materials identified three reported members of Albuquerque Court No. 24—Donald W. Anderson, R. W. Keers and R. R. Kirby—on a guest list for an August 31–September 9, 2005 fishing trip.
The same account described a proposed defense witness list containing 19 Jesters members.
Their appearance on a guest list or proposed witness list does not, by itself, establish participation in sexual exploitation or other criminal conduct.
JUDGES, CopS JESTERS, and young women
A retired judge, a former prosecutor and law-enforcement officers were among those convicted in a federal investigation into prostitution at Royal Order of Jesters gatherings. Other names surfaced in related investigations.
RONALD H. TILLS
A retired New York Supreme Court justice, Tills admitted arranging prostitutes for Jesters gatherings in the United States and Canada. He received an 18-month federal prison sentence and a $25,000 fine.
MICHAEL R. STEBICK
A former prosecutor and court law clerk, Stebick pleaded guilty to conspiracy involving interstate transportation for prostitution. He received home confinement, probation, community service and a fine.
JOHN TROWBRIDGE
A retired Lockport police captain, Trowbridge admitted transporting a woman to a Kentucky Jesters gathering for prostitution. He received probation and a fine.
MICHAEL LESINSKI
A former Erie County sheriff's deputy, Lesinski admitted transporting women to a 2005 Jesters convention in Canada, where paid sexual activity occurred. He pleaded guilty to concealing a felony and received probation and a fine.
LEN WAH CHONG
Chong was convicted in a related Western New York sex-trafficking investigation and received a six-year federal prison sentence. His membership in the Jesters has not been established.
RICHARD W. SCHAIR
Schair operated Wet-A-Line Tours, which organized fishing trips in Brazil's Amazon region. Brazilian authorities investigated allegations that underage Indigenous girls were recruited for prostitution involving tourists. Schair was reportedly indicted in Brazil, but a final conviction has not been verified. His Jesters membership has not been established.
DONALD W. ANDERSON
A reported member of the Royal Order of Jesters' Albuquerque Court No. 24, Anderson was named in a 2005 Wet-A-Line Tours customer manifest submitted in Brazilian court proceedings. No criminal wrongdoing by Anderson has been established.
R. W. KEERS
An Albuquerque Jester identified in the same 2005 Wet-A-Line Tours customer manifest.
R. R. KIRBY
An Albuquerque Jester identified in the 2005 Wet-A-Line Tours customer manifest.
Carey CAN’T be trusted
to tackle TRAFFICKING
Can a Member of a Secret Society Linked to Prostitution Help Combat Human Trafficking or Push for the Full Release of the Epstein Files?
From Cleveland to Akron to Canton, human trafficking remains a persistent problem in the Buckeye State.
Ohio has long struggled with human trafficking, particularly the sexual exploitation of women and children. Its major interstate highways, large population centers and proximity to multiple state borders create opportunities for traffickers to move and exploit victims.
In 2025, the National Human Trafficking Hotline identified 337 trafficking cases involving 513 victims in Ohio. And those are just the cases reported to the hotline. The actual number of victims remains unknown.
The problem extends well beyond Cleveland. Akron, Canton and surrounding communities have faced trafficking investigations, including allegations of sexual exploitation concealed behind seemingly legitimate businesses.
Nearly two decades after the Royal Order of Jesters scandal, human trafficking remains a serious issue in Ohio. The question is no longer whether the problem exists. It's how much of it remains hidden.