Willoughby, OH

Willoughby is a city in Lake County, located in northern Ohio near Cleveland, and has a population of approximately 24,000 residents. Prostitution is a documented problem in the city and has been linked to other crimes. In one case, a man fleeing a prostitution sting assaulted an officer and rammed a police vehicle with his […]

Linn County, IA

Linn County has approximately 226,000 residents, and is located in eastern Iowa. Cedar Rapids is the county’s seat and largest city. Prostitution activity has been well-documented in the city and surrounding communities, and in other areas of the county.  This activity and the problems and ancillary crimes it generates results in complaints to law enforcement […]

Belmont, NC

Belmont is a small city of approximately 15,000 residents, located just west of Charlotte in Gaston County, North Carolina.  Among the problems associated with local prostitution, there have been cases of sex buyers being robbed. In an effort to reduce prostitution activity in the city, the Belmont Police Department has conducted at least one street-level […]

Ankeny, IA

Ankeny is a city of approximately 70,000 residents, situated just north of Des Moines along Interstate 35 in Polk County, Iowa. Prostitution and sex trafficking are well-documented problems in the city, and investigations and enforcement actions have been conducted for decades. Consumer level demand provides the revenue stream for all prostitution and sex trafficking, and […]

Joplin, MO

Joplin is a city of about 52,000 residents that is located in western Missouri, along Interstate 44 near the Oklahoma and Kansas borders.  Prostitution has been reported in the city as early as the 1870s, when a mining boom brought a large influx of male miners, soon followed by brothels.  In 2012-2013, a case of […]

Grand Forks, ND

Grand Forks, the county seat of Grand Forks County, is a city of about 57,000 residents in eastern North Dakota. Prostitution and sex trafficking have been known to occur in the city and surrounding areas dating back to the late 1800s when the railroads were being built. Prostitution increased a great deal with North Dakota’s […]

Columbia, TN

Columbia is a city of approximately 43,000 residents, located about an hour south of Nashville in Maury County, Tennessee. Prostitution and sex trafficking have been well documented problems in Columbia and the surrounding areas for decades. For example, in December 2011, three local men were convicted of human trafficking in Columbia. According to a federal […]

Bloomington, IL

Bloomington is a city of approximately 78,000 residents, located in McLean County in central Illinois. Prostitution and sex trafficking activity have been well-documented in the city and surrounding communities, and in unincorporated areas of the McLean County. For at least 50 years, the city had a robust “red light district” before it was was shut […]

Iberville Parish, LA

Iberville Parish has approximately 30,000 residents, and is located south of Baton Rouge in Louisiana. Prostitution activity has been well-documented within the Parish, and the problems and ancillary crimes it generates results in complaints to law enforcement agencies from residents and businesses. For example, in 2010, the Law Enforcement Against Drugs (LEAD) Task Force arrested two […]

Meridian, ID

Meridian is a city of approximately 118,000 residents in southwestern Idaho, located in Ada County. It is the second largest city in Idaho and is a suburb of the state’s capital, Boise. Prostitution and sex trafficking activity has been well-documented in the city, surrounding communities, and unincorporated areas of Ada County. This activity and the […]