Mahopac, also known as Lake Mahopac, is a hamlet of just under 9,000 residents in the town of Carmel, New York. It is located west of Danbury, Connecticut, and 47 miles north of New York City, in Putnam County. Prostitution and sex trafficking of minors in the town have been well-documented. For example, in 2010, an undercover operation led to the arrest of a massage parlor owner, who was charged with prostitution.

To combat consumer-level demand, police have conducted at least one operation targeting sex buyers. This reverse sting operation was a “spin-off” from conventional stings which normally target prostituted persons. In 2006, the Putnam County Sheriff’s Office arrested two women for charges of prostitution and acquired several cell phones used to arrange illegal commercial sex encounters. The seized phones were used to run a reverse sting which led to the arrest of several sex buyers. The names and hometowns of all arrestees were reported in the local newspaper.