Oxford County is a located in Northwestern Maine, along the Vermont and Quebec borders. Its population is roughly of 58,000, and the county seat is the town of Paris.  Prostitution and sex trafficking activity have been well-documented in the county, and that activity and the problems and ancillary crimes it generates results in complaints to law enforcement agencies from residents and businesses. Among the more serious crimes associated with the local commercial sex market is sex trafficking, and violence associated with involvement in prostitution has also been documented.  For example, in March 2019, prosecutors said that an alleged victim in a sex trafficking case who was scheduled to testify against her fiance was found dead. The Sun Journal reported that Assistant District Attorney Nathan Walsh would dismiss the felony sex trafficking charge filed against 36-year-old man following the woman’s death. Maine State Police said that the body of the 38-year-old woman was found in Oxford County.

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. To identify and apprehend local sex buyers driving the prostitution and sex trafficking markets, the Oxford County Sheriff’s Office has collaborated with state and local police, and federal agencies, to conduct at least one reverse sting.  In June 2019, six men were arrested in a reverse sting in Oxford County. The men made arrangements online through a website set up by law enforcement and were arrested after showing up at an undisclosed Oxford County hotel. Those arrested were brought to Oxford County Jail, where they were processed, charged, and released on $500 unsecured bail. The men were each charged with soliciting a prostitute, and their identities included in news releases. Soliciting a prostitute is a Class E crime punishable by up to six months in jail and a fine of up to $1,000.  Participating agencies included Oxford Police Department, Rumford Police Department, Lisbon Police Department, Auburn Police Department, Androscoggin County Sheriff’s Office, Maine State Police, Maine Department of Corrections, FBI Human Trafficking Task Force, Department of Homeland Security and the District Attorney’s Office.