Indian Wells is a city of about 5,000 residents in Riverside County, located in southern California in the Coachella Valley between the cities of Palm Desert and La Quinta. Prostitution and sex trafficking have not been well-documented specifically in the city, but have been known to occur in the county and Coachella Valley area.

At least one web-based reverse sting has been conducted in the city. In May 2021, a prostitution sting in Indian Wells conducted by deputies from the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department resulted in the arrest of five sex buyers. The operation involved law enforcement placing fake classified ads on websites commonly used for online prostitution. When prospective sex buyers responded and an agreement for paid sex acts was reached, the men were arrested after arriving at a predetermined meeting location. All five men were arrested on suspicion of soliciting prostitution, a misdemeanor. Their identities were not released in news reports.