HOUSTON (AP) - Houston police operating a bogus brothel have arrested 139 men allegedly seeking to buy sex.
Police Chief Art Acevedo (ah-seh-VAY’-doh) on Thursday announced results of the sting that began Oct. 6 and included one officer arrested on sexual exploitation-related counts.
Acevedo, who displayed booking photos of dozens of suspects, said the officer has been put on restricted duty amid the investigation. His name wasn’t immediately released.
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Acevedo told a news conference that the sex trade is alive in Houston and that women were the victims being coerced into prostitution.
The so-called “8 Star Spa” was on the site of a massage parlor that closed in 2016 following a string of arrests. Undercover police pretended to be spa workers leading to this month’s arrests over a 10-day period.
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