Boardman Township is a community in Mahoning County, Ohio. Its population was about 40,000 at the 2020 Census, and is located directly south of Youngstown. it is the second largest municipality in the Youngstown–Warren metropolitan area and is a major retail hub for the region. Prostitution has been well documented locally and throughout the region for decades. This activity and the problems and ancillary crimes it generates results in complaints to law enforcement agencies. Among the more serious crimes associated with the local commercial sex market is sex trafficking.

Consumer level demand provides the revenue stream for all prostitution and sex trafficking, and has therefore been targeted by local law enforcement agencies as a strategy for prevention and response. For example, in June, 2014, twelve people arrested on prostitution-related charges in a sting operation conducted by Boardman Township police, the FBI and officers from the Mahoning Valley Violent Crimes Task Force. Eleven were women arrested on prostitution charges.  A 29 year old man from Boardman was the only sex buyer arrested in the operation. He pleaded not guilty to charges of compelling prostitution and possessing criminal tools. His bond was set at $8,000, and a pre-trial hearing was scheduled.