Brookhaven is a town of over 480,000 residents, located in central Suffolk County on Long Island, New York. It includes the hamlets Coram, Gordon Heights, Holtsville, Mastic, and North Bellport. Like most of Long Island, the town has reported prostitution activity arranged mainly through websites such as Backpage and Craigslist, and/or occurring in some sexually-oriented businesses (e.g., strip clubs, massage parlors).

In order to combat the consumer-level demand that drives all commercial sex markets, police have incorporated tactics that target sex buyers. Driven in part by community complaints, the Suffolk County Police Department has conducted at least two reverse sting operations. One operation conducted in November 2011 resulted in the arrest of six men who were charged with “patronizing a prostitute.” Officers from the Fourth Precinct Crime Section and the Community Oriented Police Enforcement team (COPE) conducted the sting along Mastic Avenue, and charged the men with third-degree “patronizing a prostitute.” The identities of the men were provided to news outlets.