DAVENPORT -- The inconspicuous mobile home on Powerline Road doesn't seem inviting -- given its fenced yard, gated driveway with "no trespassing" signs and overgrown landscaping.

But federal law-enforcement officials said the Davenport home has been a hot spot for Central Florida's migrant farmworkers looking for a good time.

Seven Central Florida residents accused of operating that brothel were arrested last week on charges of conspiracy to transport individuals for sexual activity: Francisco Mariano-Cepeda, 43, of Kissimmee; Maritza Trochez, 28, of Kissimmee; Jose Rodriguez, 56, of Plant City; Mario Castillo, 55, of Auburndale; Crusita Cabrera de Falero, 44, of Kissimmee; Wesilandy Ceballos, 35, of Orlando; and Rudi Cabrera, 36, of Orlando, the U.S. Attorney's Office said.

The brothel was an active operation that serviced predominantly Mexican farmworkers, said Pam McCullough, spokeswoman for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

The sex-trafficking ring is also suspected of operating brothels in Hillsborough and Orange counties since 2000, the U.S. Attorney's Office said.

According to the federal indictment, the ring is accused of hiring prostitutes and then negotiating terms, dates and conditions with them. The ring operators also established fees with the prostitutes and arranged for the proceeds to be divided among themselves.

"Really, they are probably not that rare," said Polk County sheriff's Chief W.J. Martin. "They pretty much fly under the radar because the clientele are all the illegal immigrants."

Because many of the people living in the migrant areas are illegal residents, they are reluctant to report crime or ask for help from police, Martin said.

Last year in Mascotte, a small south Lake County community, authorities arrested several people after an investigation revealed a brothel in a small house. On weekends, 10 to 15 men would visit each night, paying $20 for 15 minutes with a woman, law-enforcement authorities said.

Brothels and the crimes associated with them such as drugs occur throughout Florida's rural and agricultural counties, said Frank Figueroa, the special agent in charge for the Tampa division of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

"They were in a low-risk community," Figueroa said of the Davenport operation. "Their ability to stay under our radar screen was somewhat successful."

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