Seattle Police “Rescue” 26 Sex Workers. But Did They Want to Be Rescued?
The Seattle Police Department, along with the FBI and Department of Homeland Security, say they arrested five people and “rescued 26 victims of sex trafficking” earlier this month during raids of nearly a dozen businesses in the Chinatown-International and Beacon Hill districts.
The Seattle Times broke the story last Friday, reporting that the owners of these so-called “massage parlors” were illegally selling sex acts and are suspected of recruiting women, mostly Chinese nationals, to come to the U.S. to work in them. Nearly 200 law enforcement officers and other personnel worked on this operation for over three years before the arrests were made, and the initial complaint came from a neighbor of one of the massage parlors in Beacon Hill, who reported that she saw men coming and going at odd hours. During the investigation, law enforcement worked to connect the local operations to what the Seattle Times called “a vast prostitution and money-laundering investigation, tying massage parlors and spas in Seattle to a sophisticated criminal network that brings Chinese women into the U.S. through hubs in California and New York and funnels millions of dollars back to China.” Police reportedly seized more than $120,000 in cash.
At a SPD press conference on Friday afternoon, Deputy Chief Marc Garthgreen said that the women were living in “squalid conditions” and that the business owners took a portion of their earnings for rent—which, according to the Seattle Times, was between $360 to $600 a month—as well food, travel, and other fees. Still, the women themselves seem to have made a bundle of money: The paper reported that “women working in the parlors can make $10,000 a month,” although they mentioned that one woman was
“forced” to repay her boss for a $1,200 cell phone that he bought for her.
In Florida, as in Seattle, no one has actually been charged with human trafficking, which could mean that these women weren’t actually trafficked against their will or their knowledge, they were just people trying to make a decent living.
There’s another parallel too: In Florida, police took six months to shut down these massage parlors, and this was after multiple undercover visits from detectives working the case (and, yes, they did enage in sex acts with the “victims” they later “rescued” themselves). In Seattle, the sting took three and a half years. The SPD says that their officers didn’t engage in sex acts during the investigation and made up an excuse to leave when it came time to drop their pants. This may well be true, but even the SPD didn’t employ these women’s services, if they actually were being held and forced to perform sex acts against their will, why in the world would the police wait three years to rescue them?
Writer Elizabeth Nolan Brown brought this up when reporting on the Florida bust for Reason, writing, “It’s hard to reconcile the cops’ timeline with their heroic rhetoric. If the women employed at these businesses were really the victims of ‘modern slavery,’ why did police take six months to get them out of that situation? Why did it require repeat intimate undercover visits and building misdemeanor prostitution charges against all sorts of random men before these ‘heroes’ decided to intervene?” These are legitimate questions.
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A free country would never try to legislate morality. Big government has long been way out of control. Let’s make America a free country and get rid of harassers who can’t mind their own business or leave other families alone. Let’s get rid of them.
Who’s Trafficking Who?
A Law Enforcement Officer CANNOT BREAK THE LAW during an “Investigation” !! Anything they do “Illegally” they must answer for !!. And these undercover cops in Florida that “Ingaged in Sexual Acts” with these “Victims” SHOULD be CHARGED FOR SEX CRIMES !!!. The tactics and things that “Law Enforcement” is using and doing to “Arrest” people nowadays is INSANE !!!!. The “Police” Break more laws than the people they arrest !!!. If “Law Enforcement” has to “Break Laws” to arrest someone, Who is the actual “Criminal” ?????. Yes, I strongly believe that we need “,Law Enforcement” in this country, BUT, I strongly believe that we do NOT need it the way it’s currently being done !!!. There is SO MUCH “Misuse of Funds and Authority” by our “Law Enforcement Agencies” that they have become the “Biggest Gang In The World” !!. And things have GOT TO CHANGE now !! I mean, 3 YEARS AND HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS OF DOLLARS!!! To Arrest 26 people for “Prostitution” ???????? COME ON !!?!?!?!?!?!?.. And all the while , The “COPS” are getting “Services” from these same “Victims” !!?!?!?!?.. And I strongly believe that “Law Enforcement” a HUGE part of “The Problem” with most of the “Crisis’s” our Country has !! “Law Enforcement” sells as much if not MORE drugs than the “, Dealer’s” !! All under the “Protection” of our “Government” !! It’s WRONG WRONG WRONG !! And the real reason for it all is MONEY !! All these “Law Enforcement Agencies” really care about is the MONEY/CASH/ASSETS that they “SEIZE” from all their “Busts” !! Something has to be done!! And done SOON !!
It won’t be long, and no one will be able to get a legitimate back and neck message. Just saying!. Has 30% of the world’s population gone sex crazy?. I seems like every day there is something on the news about unlawful sex issues! Something needs to be done starting years ago, to educate people that could be heading in the “wrong direction” as far as trying to get away with making money illegally. The world is full of scammers, robbers, murderers. Now it’s 8 year old’s sexting, Men of the cloth, Teachers, Doctors, Lawyers, ECT. getting into trouble. So why in the he’ll do registered SO’S have to be the Terrible low life’s of the earth!. especially after sooo long ago! It’s the potential new one’s that need the attention!. Just saying!
I am over-generalizing, I know….But…
In the 1980s the boogieman was serial killers. (There was one supposedly lurking in every motel).
In the 1990s the boogieman was Satan worshippers and perverted daycare workers. (remember?)
In the 2000s it was Muslim terrorists and pedophiles.
Nowadays the boogieman is hyped as being “sex traffickers” – never mind the facts, just listen to (and foment) the hype!
(sigh…)