Irving is a city of about 245,300 residents, situated northwest of Dallas in Dallas County, Texas. Cases of sex trafficking and targeted homicides of women selling sex have occurred in the community, and prostitution has been identified by residents and police as a local problem.

Though reports of targeting demand appear limited, local law enforcement has on at least one occasion launched an investigation to identify “customers” of recovered minor trafficking victims. In November 2015, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement released a press release announcing that a 33-year-old Irving resident had been found guilty of one count of conspiracy to commit sex trafficking of children. The man had reportedly “purchased” commercial sex acts from a 12-year-old female who was being sex trafficked– with four other minor girls– by a 19-year-old pimp.

The details of the investigation leading to the “john’s” arrest were not disclosed, though ICE reported that the trafficker, who was also found guilty of conspiracy to commit sex trafficking of children, had “made several phone calls seeking potential commercial sex customers for the minor females,” during which he reached the “john” who “agreed to come to [a] location to engage in a commercial sex act.” The offender reportedly selected the victim after the trafficker “told the four minor females to line up so the men could select who they wanted to have sex with.” The man reportedly selected the youngest, an unnamed 12-year-old girl, and “negotiated the price for sex with a girl down to $50. Shortly thereafter, he engaged in commercial sex acts with [the victim], paid [the trafficker] and his minor male friend about $50, and hastily left.” Following his arrest and trial, the john’s identity was released to the public, and heavily publicized in press.