Sportswriter Turns Pimp After Pay Cut

A New Hampshire sportswriter whose pay was slashed decided to try his hand at moonlighting. But cops say he should have stuck to baseball games instead setting up a prostitution business. Former New Hampshire Union Leader reporter Kevin Provencher, 52, has been sentenced to more that two years in prison for luring women into prostitution and running the operation. His attorney told the judge that Provencher launched his "side business" to supplement his wages, which were cut in cost-savings measures at his paper, reports the Eagle Tribune.

He advertised his prostitution business on Craigslist and other websites, set up prostitutes in hotels, and took half their pay after charging them for the rooms, according to officials. "His crime was not a one-time lapse in judgment," said a prosecutor. "He planned, thought out and ran these services at the expense of these women." Provencher's attorney argued: "To call these women victims is really overplaying this. That's just not accurate," he added, calling the hookers "equal partners." (More journalist stories.)