The Long Beach Police Department (LBPD) arrested 12 suspects seeking to hire prostitutes online during an undercover operation last week.
The Vice Department’s operation, conducted entirely via the internet, involved posting fake advertisements for a woman offering sexual services for pay. As men responded to the ads, LBPD officers would arrange to have them meet at a hotel, where they were promptly arrested.
Of the 12 arrests, 10 were for solicitation of a prostitute; one for an outstanding misdemeanor warrant; and one for sexual battery. Six of the arrests were of residents of Long Beach.
According to the LBPD, “operations of this type have been due in large part to community concerns regarding quality of life issues in the area. Long Beach Police will continue to conduct undercover anti-prostitution operations throughout the city in an effort to curtail this nuisance activity and the negative effects it has on the community.”
The Vice Department has made several other arrests this year related to prostitution and human trafficking, including one in which a 17-year-old girl was forced into prostitution by a 40 year-old she met through a friend. He supposedly used online services to find her clients.
Anyone wishing to report prostitution should contact the Long Beach Police Department’s Vice Investigations Detail at (562) 570-7219.
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