Woodbury County has approximately 106,000 residents, and is located in western Iowa along the Nebraska border, north of Omaha and south of Sioux Falls along Interstate 29. The county seat is Sioux City.  Prostitution and sex trafficking have been identified by law enforcement as problems in the cities and unincorporated areas of the county, and residents have complained to police about these activities.

In response to concerns about the wide range of crimes associated with the local sex trade, law enforcement agencies within the county have employed tactics that target the underlying consumer demand for commercial sex. For example, the Sioux City Police Department began conducting street-level reverse stings in January 1983. The first operation resulted in the arrest of five male sex buyers. More recently, in February 2015, 15 men were arrested during a “reverse sweep” in the city. SCPD officers did not disclose details about the investigation, but noted that the department conducts periodic reversals to reduce demand. He added that most sweeps result in fewer arrests, typically about five men in each operation. In the days following the sting, the men’s names and hometowns were publicized by local media outlets.

The Woodbury County Sheriff’s Office has collaborated with the municipal police departments and other state and federal agencies to conduct reverse stings.  For example, in 2017 a reverse sting led to the arrest of four men at a Sioux City hotel.  A female police officer posed as a prostituted person and advertisements were placed on several websites known for facilitating prostitution and sex trafficking. The Woodbury County Sheriff’s Office collaborated with the Sioux City Police Department, Iowa State Patrol, and Department of Homeland Security for the sting.  Police identified the arrested men in news releases, and all four men were booked into the Woodbury County Jail and charged with solicitation of prostitution.