By Jonah Frangiosa
The Eagle-Tribune, North Andover, Mass.
(TNS)
HAVERHILL, MA — A Haverhill man has been sentenced to three years and one day in state prison after pleading guilty to maintaining a house of prostitution and multiple drug-related charges, according to the Office of Essex County District Attorney Paul F. Tucker.
On Friday, John Caruso, 80, a Haverhill tax accountant, entered a guilty plea in Essex County Superior Court to charges of maintaining a house of prostitution, possessing suboxone with intent to distribute, possessing gabapentin with intent to distribute, possessing marijuana with intent to distribute, and possessing fentanyl.
This case stems from the Jan. 8, 2024, overdose death of a 32-year-old woman in Caruso’s 173 River Street office in Haverhill. Authorities said the ensuing investigation revealed that Caruso used the building where he operated his accounting business to pay women in money and drugs to have sex with him and other men from June 2021 to February 2024.
Judge Elizabeth Dunigan accepted the plea and sentenced Caruso to three years and one day in state prison, followed by two years of probation. Caruso will also be required to register as a sex offender, stay away from and have no contact with the victims, remain drug free, and may be subjected to drug screenings.
When asked by Dunigan if he wished to comment, Caruso said, “I am embarrassed and I am very sorry.”
The defendant was represented by Haverhill attorney Scott Gleason, the DA’s office said.
Assistant District Attorney Jessica Strasnick shared statements from those affected by Caruso. One person said they were “glad he will be held accountable for what he has done,” while another spoke of the “atrocities committed” by Caruso and said he “has destroyed many lives and has profited from others’ misery.”
Caruso was arrested in February 2024 after the 32-year-old woman’s death, and police charged him with sexual conduct for a fee, two counts of trafficking persons for sexual servitude, usury, maintaining a house of prostitution, possession of a Class A drug (fentanyl), distribution of a Class D drug (marijuana), distribution of a Class B drug (suboxone) and possession of numerous pills.
Along with the deceased woman at Caruso’s River Street office, where he lived and owned apartment units for rent, investigators also found EBT cards at Caruso’s residence. One victim described how he would take EBT cards from young women and pay them cash at a lesser amount, which led to the usury charge.
In April of that year, Caruso was indicted by an Essex County grand jury on the charges stemming from the overdose death and related criminal activity.
Dunigan said the deceased young woman who triggered the investigation “was the light that brought this case to everyone’s attention, and this was her final gift.”
The DA’s office also highlighted Victim/Witness Advocate Michelle DeFeo for her assistance on the case.
Photo credit: e-crow/iStock
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© 2026 The Eagle-Tribune (North Andover, Mass.). Visit www.eagletribune.com. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency LLC.
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