9 arrests in Santa Rosa prostitution sting
Operation part of nationwide FBI effort; 16-year-old girl taken into protective custody
By LAURA NORTON
THE PRESS DEMOCRAT
Nine people were arrested in a Santa Rosa prostitution sting and an underage girl was taken into protective custody after she was brought to an upscale hotel by a 19-year-old man suspected of pimping her, authorities said.
The arrests were part of "Operation Cross Country II," a six-day, nationwide child prostitution sweep conducted by the FBI and local law enforcement in 29 cities. The sweep resulted in a total of 642 arrests, including 136 in the Bay Area.
The 16-year-old girl found in the Santa Rosa operation is from the Sacramento area, believed to be a ward of the court, and was transported back to Sacramento following the sting, said Police Sgt. John Snetsinger.
"We lucked out this time and were able to get a 16-year-old off the street," Snetsinger said. "It's the luck of the draw. You never know who is going to show up or how old they will be."
The Bay Area portion of the operation was carried out between Oct. 22 and Monday morning, according to FBI spokesman Joe Schadler.
In addition to Santa Rosa, arrests were made in Oakland, Concord, San Jose, Campbell, Morgan Hill, Milpitas, San Mateo, San Rafael and San Francisco, Schadler said.
More than one-fifth of the arrests nationwide and nearly one-quarter of the child prostitutes rescued were in the Bay Area.
"A bulk of the national work was done in this area," Schadler said.
In Santa Rosa, police used online classifieds and Web sites to contact potential pimps and prostitutes and arranged for meetings at the unidentified hotel, Snetsinger said.
Locating suspects was not difficult, he said. "Undercover officers made the phone calls and started stacking them up," he said.
Eight women who showed up for their date with an undercover officer Thursday night were arrested after surveillance equipment in hotel rooms and the parking lot captured enough evidence to charge them with a sex crime, Snetsinger said.
They range in age from 18 to 34. Two are from Sonoma County, and the others are from Fairfield, Vallejo, Vacaville and San Francisco.
Police identified the 19-year-old man who brought the 16-year-old girl to the hotel as Adrian Corberay of Sacramento. He was arrested on charges of pimping a juvenile.
Police said a 33-year-old Marin County man, Halbert Lofton, also was arrested at the hotel on suspicion of violating parole.
He was not arrested on a prostitution-related charge.
Snetsinger said many more people could have been arrested in the sting.
"We had a lot more set up," he said. "But a lot of them showed up and drove through the parking lot. It was a revolving door. We didn't have enough room, and they saw the others" being detained.
In 2007, Santa Rosa Police arrested 68 people for prostitution crimes. They've made 20 arrests so far this year, including those in Thursday's sting.
"It is a crime that often goes unreported and unfortunately often involves children," said Sonoma County District Attorney Stephan Passalacqua.
"We are going to continue working with law enforcement and working in collaboration with our public safety partners to identify those individuals responsible for committing this type of crime," he said.
Operation part of nationwide FBI effort; 16-year-old girl taken into protective custody
By LAURA NORTON
THE PRESS DEMOCRAT
Nine people were arrested in a Santa Rosa prostitution sting and an underage girl was taken into protective custody after she was brought to an upscale hotel by a 19-year-old man suspected of pimping her, authorities said.
The arrests were part of "Operation Cross Country II," a six-day, nationwide child prostitution sweep conducted by the FBI and local law enforcement in 29 cities. The sweep resulted in a total of 642 arrests, including 136 in the Bay Area.
The 16-year-old girl found in the Santa Rosa operation is from the Sacramento area, believed to be a ward of the court, and was transported back to Sacramento following the sting, said Police Sgt. John Snetsinger.
"We lucked out this time and were able to get a 16-year-old off the street," Snetsinger said. "It's the luck of the draw. You never know who is going to show up or how old they will be."
The Bay Area portion of the operation was carried out between Oct. 22 and Monday morning, according to FBI spokesman Joe Schadler.
In addition to Santa Rosa, arrests were made in Oakland, Concord, San Jose, Campbell, Morgan Hill, Milpitas, San Mateo, San Rafael and San Francisco, Schadler said.
More than one-fifth of the arrests nationwide and nearly one-quarter of the child prostitutes rescued were in the Bay Area.
"A bulk of the national work was done in this area," Schadler said.
In Santa Rosa, police used online classifieds and Web sites to contact potential pimps and prostitutes and arranged for meetings at the unidentified hotel, Snetsinger said.
Locating suspects was not difficult, he said. "Undercover officers made the phone calls and started stacking them up," he said.
Eight women who showed up for their date with an undercover officer Thursday night were arrested after surveillance equipment in hotel rooms and the parking lot captured enough evidence to charge them with a sex crime, Snetsinger said.
They range in age from 18 to 34. Two are from Sonoma County, and the others are from Fairfield, Vallejo, Vacaville and San Francisco.
Police identified the 19-year-old man who brought the 16-year-old girl to the hotel as Adrian Corberay of Sacramento. He was arrested on charges of pimping a juvenile.
Police said a 33-year-old Marin County man, Halbert Lofton, also was arrested at the hotel on suspicion of violating parole.
He was not arrested on a prostitution-related charge.
Snetsinger said many more people could have been arrested in the sting.
"We had a lot more set up," he said. "But a lot of them showed up and drove through the parking lot. It was a revolving door. We didn't have enough room, and they saw the others" being detained.
In 2007, Santa Rosa Police arrested 68 people for prostitution crimes. They've made 20 arrests so far this year, including those in Thursday's sting.
"It is a crime that often goes unreported and unfortunately often involves children," said Sonoma County District Attorney Stephan Passalacqua.
"We are going to continue working with law enforcement and working in collaboration with our public safety partners to identify those individuals responsible for committing this type of crime," he said.