Shakopee is a city of approximately 45,000 residents located near downtown Minneapolis, to the southwest in Scott County. Prostitution and sex trafficking activity have been well-documented in the city and surrounding communities and unincorporated areas of the greater Minneapolis/St. Paul metro region. This activity and the problems and ancillary crimes it generates result in complaints to law enforcement agencies from residents and businesses. Among the more serious problems associated with prostitution in the area is child sex trafficking.

To combat prostitution and sex trafficking in the area, local law enforcement agencies have targeted consumer-level demand, which provides the revenue stream driving all prostitution and trafficking. For example, sixteen people were arrested in Shakopee as part of a seven-day sex trafficking sting operation in the metro area in the days before and after the 2018 Super Bowl in Minneapolis. The Shakopee Police Department was heavily involved in two sex trafficking sting operations in the region. After months of planning, Shakopee Sgt. John Buetow headed an operation with assistance from Carver County, Chaska, Savage, Belle Plaine, and New Prague in surveillance, arrests ,and interviews. First they worked with the state Bureau of Criminal Apprehension from January 26 to February 2, and then they assisted the Guardian Angels Task Force. A Shakopee home was used as part of an undercover operation, and of the 16 people arrested in Shakopee, only one person was from Shakopee. The BCI sting resulted in 43 arrests, and the Guardian Angels Task Force arrested over 100 people. In the BCA operations, people posed as minors online, while Guardian Angels ran ads offering juvenile escorts.

A similar Guardian Angels operation during the Ryder Cup in 2016 in Chaska resulted in nine arrests in Shakopee. Law enforcement posted ads on Craigslist and Backpage.com for those prior operations.