Crackdown on sex trafficking nets over 20 arrests in Lake Elsinore

LAKE ELSINORE, Calif. (KESQ) - A law enforcement operation in Lake Elsinore targeting suspects seeking illicit sexual services netted 20 arrests, authorities said today.

The Riverside County Anti-Human Trafficking Task Force conducted the undercover sting at the end of June, with the goal of cracking down on individuals allegedly trying to procure prostitutes on the street.

"Prostitution is not a `victimless crime,''' sheriff's Sgt. Jarrod Meissen said. "Sex trafficking victims are subjected to not only severe forms of emotional, physical and sexual abuse ... but are also physically and
sexually assaulted by those who solicit them for prostitution."  

The 19 men and one woman taken into custody included residents of Corona, Hemet, Lake Elsinore, Los Angeles, Menifee, Murrieta, Perris, Riverside, San Jacinto, Temecula and Westminster.

Most of the individuals apprehended were booked on suspicion of solicitation of prostitution, pimping and pandering.   

Anyone with information regarding sex trafficking was encouraged to contact the National Human Trafficking Resource Center at 888-373-7888.