News reports of prostitution in the city date as far back as the early 20th century, and more recently, sex trafficking has been documented. There have been cases where San Luis Obispo police have arrested people robbing sex buyers, and prostituted women have also been assaulted and murdered in the city and surrounding areas of the county.
To address the issue, law enforcement agencies have conducted reverse stings since at least , and routinely release the names of the johns they arrest.
In September , for example, SLOPD officers collaborated with their counterparts in nearby Arroyo Grande and Pismo Beach on a three-day web sting targeting both sex buyers and prostituted women. Officers posted and responded to advertisements soliciting sex on MyRedbook. Following the investigation, the SLOPD distributed a press release that noted the following impetus for conducting the operation:.
Often these underage females are held against their will and are coerced into services through force, fear and retaliation if they do not perform. Often acts of prostitution are accompanied by the use and sales of narcotics, acts of violence to include serious assaults and robbery and the trafficking of stolen property. Additionally, those engaged in these encounters are exposed to transmittable diseases creating an additional public health and safety concern.
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