The operation is timed to coincide with National Human Trafficking Awareness Month and serves as a reminder that human trafficking will not be tolerated in California.
The task force arrested 31 males and seven females for solicitation of prostitution including 4 adult victims rescued. Task force officers also made contact with two adult females believed to be victims of sex trafficking. Initial investigations led the task force to believe these subjects were being forced to engage in acts of prostitution against their will. Task force officers placed decoy advertisements on popular classified advertisement websites commonly used for the solicitation of prostitution.
These officers then responded to prospective customers who replied to these advertisements. Once an agreement for prostitution was brokered, the customers were arrested upon their arrival at a pre-determined meeting location. Concurrently, other task force officers negotiated agreed-upon acts of prostitution based upon other escort advertisements that were posted online in the area. In these instances, females who responded to the undercover officers posing as customers were directed to meet.
After their arrival and an interview, if the females were determined not to be victims of human trafficking, they too were arrested. Arrested during the operation for solicitation for prostitution, possession of a controlled substance and paraphernalia:. Suspects arrested during this operation were transported to the detention center in the closest proximity to the operational area s each day.
Following booking, each arrestee was ultimately released upon their written promise to later appear in court, according to authorities. Both address crimes involving the exploitation of victims via force, fraud, or coercion. These cases often involve the commercial sex trafficking of children, as well as incidents of forced labor, indentured servitude, debt bondage, or slavery.
