A 42-year-old Camarillo man was the only one of five people arrested in an Oct. 29 Ventura motel operation to face felony counts, including allegations involving a minor, police say. The department said no juveniles participated in the sting.
According to the Ventura County Star, the men were arrested on suspicion of soliciting prostitution following an Oct. 29 sting carried out by the Ventura Police Department. Detectives set up the operation at a local motel, where suspects were taken into custody either upon arriving at the location or after attempting to solicit prostitution, per the department. The five men arrested were a 42-year-old from Camarillo, a 36-year-old from Santa Paula, a 57-year-old from Arizona, and two 29-year-old men from Oxnard.
Camarillo Man Faces Additional Felony Counts
The Camarillo man's case carries additional allegations. Besides the prostitution-related allegation, he faces felony charges of soliciting a minor for a commercial sex act and arriving at a location intending to have sex with a minor, the news release states. He was booked into Ventura County jail and has since been released. The other four men were cited for misdemeanors and released without being booked.
Police emphasized that no juveniles were actually part of the enforcement operation. The sting was run jointly by the Ventura Police Department's special victims, major crimes and street crimes units, reflecting the coordinated approach the department has taken toward these kinds of operations.
How California defines trafficking involving a minor
California's legal definition provides context for the allegations, but does not establish that a minor was involved in this operation: the California Department of Justice, Office of the Attorney General, says exploitation of a minor for commercial sex is human trafficking even without force, fraud or coercion. Police said no juveniles took part in the sting.
Police Frame the Operation as Part of a Broader Push
Ventura police said the demand for commercial sex can contribute to human trafficking and the exploitation of vulnerable people, framing the sting within that larger concern. The department said targeted enforcement operations like this one aim to hold perpetrators accountable, help prevent further victimization, and bring greater attention to human trafficking in Ventura, according to KTLA. Anyone with information about suspected human trafficking crimes is asked to contact their local law enforcement agency.
This isn't the only recent operation of its kind in Ventura County. A separate undercover sting by the Ventura County Human Trafficking Task Force resulted in nine men being arrested on suspicion of soliciting prostitution, as reported by KTLA, after investigators posed as sex workers at a hotel on the 1500 block of Newbury Road in Thousand Oaks starting around 9 a.m. And on Oct. 22, another Ventura County operation targeting sex buyers in Thousand Oaks led to six arrests as part of a 10-day statewide effort called Operation Trick R Treat, led by the Sacramento Regional Human Trafficking Task Force, KTLA reported. That operation was distinct from Thursday's motel sting in Ventura.
