South Hackensack is a township of approximately 2,000 residents, located near Hackensack in Bergen County, New Jersey. Like many communities in the vicinity, the township has dealt with ongoing problems related to prostitution and drug sales at hotels and other businesses along its Route 46 corridor. At least two cases of child sex trafficking have been documented, as have cases of prostituted persons being raped.

To address the issue, the South Hackensack Police Department has conducted at least two street-level reverse stings, in 1997 and 2004. Both operations sent female law enforcement officers undercover as decoys to walk along “troubled” stretches of Route 46, and apprehend men as they solicited sex from the officers. While local media outlets publicized the names of those arrested, it is unclear whether or not the information was formally released by the SHPD.