Pajaro is a census-designated place of roughly 3,500 residents, situated on the south bank of the Pajaro River in Monterey County, California, located south of Santa Cruz near Watsonville. Law enforcement have fielded complaints from residents about prostitution in the city.

In July 2009, the Monterey County Sheriff’s Office launched an investigation that resulted in the arrest of five sex buyers. The operation was not a conventional reverse sting; it was a brothel raid and investigation, and after the operators were arrested, police arrested sex buyers who arrived and arranged to buy sex. MCSO officers reportedly initiated the operation after receiving tips and complaints from residents about prostitution occurring in a local home. During the investigation, a homeowner was arrested for running a brothel disguised as a massage parlor, a woman was arrested on prostitution charges, and five sex buyers were arrested. The identities of all arrestees were publicly disclosed.