They were charged with rape, holding women against their will, trafficking minors, and laundering money. The debate over legal sex work doesn’t really intersect with that.

It's not the profit, it's the force. Many agree that women should have the right to do sex work, and even for others to profit from that, but not that it should be possible to compel or defraud them into it.

If I were pressured into a line of work by a love interest with ulterior motives, have to pay 50%+ to this pimp, and risk social being ostracized or at least loss of future prospects, then I'd be quite unhappy. Are such 'businesses' ethical or even legal? Apparently not in Romania.

I highly recommend actually knowing what a conversation is about. Read the charges, you're defending an actual rapist and human trafficker...