But law enforcement and cab drivers will be on the lookout for something that typically stays in the shadows: sex trafficking.
Chicago Police Sgt. Traci Walker said police are monitoring several pimps’ Facebook accounts and many are talking about taking “their girls” down to Indianapolis. Walker and Erin Knowles, program manager of The Salvation Army’s STOP-IT Program, detailed various efforts to combat both sex and labor trafficking at a community discussion Wednesday night at Hobart Middle School.
Indianapolis cab drivers, as well as service employees in the city, have received special training on identifying potential victims of the commercial sex-trafficking industry. And a bill to toughen the penalties on sex traffickers is making its way through the Indiana General Assembly.
Walker said the sex trade lies just beneath the surface of purportedly legitimate businesses, such as massage parlors, acupuncture centers, spas, escort services, strip clubs and phone sex lines.
See the full article from “Post-Tribune”
… Our goal is to increase awareness that prostitution isn’t a victimless crime,” Zoeller claimed. “Many of these young women who enter the sex trade are often physically forced, coerced, raped or imprisoned by their traffickers.”
Trouble is, apparently all that force, coercion, rape and imprisonment is really, really well hidden.
“If they [police] know what to look for, what questions to ask, we’re hoping we can identify more victims and serve them,” said Abby Kuzma, director of the Attorney General’s Consumer Protection Office.
And if they can’t find “victims” to “serve,” they’ll do their best to create them. Just three days after the confab, the Indianapolis Metropolitan Police (with a Fox 59 News crew in tow) raided three massage parlors in Marion County, seizing massage tables, computers and arrested two women, neither of whom were minors, and neither of whom appeared to have been “trafficked.”
See the full article from “AVN News (press release)”
The Circle City Super Bowl is expected to draw 70,000 fans and an additional 4,500 members of the media. And those 74,500 people will likely be carrying at least 75,000 cell phones. If every person with a cell phone cannot get access to a cell network, complaints will fly.
So Indianapolis officials are assessing just how much bandwidth they will need to make sure everyone at and around the game can talk and send data. Wireless carriers are working to expand and upgrade their systems in time for the Big Ten football championship on Dec. 3, which may well serve as a test of the system.
While technicians seek to make sure every cell phone works, law enforcement wants women engaging in the worlds oldest profession not to work, especially during Super Bowl week. After warning they planned a crackdown on prostitution, Indianapolis police raided four city massage parlors this week, and the investigations apparently go beyond prostitution to include human trafficking.
See the full article from “Fort Wayne Journal Gazette”
INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Indianapolis police have raided several massage parlors as part of an ongoing investigation into human trafficking. WRTV-TV reported (http://bit.ly/pGJQP9 ) police served search warrants on the massage parlors Monday. U.S. Immigration and Custom Enforcement spokeswoman Gail…
See the full article from “Houston Chronicle”
Police Raid Massage Parlors In Human Trafficking Probe
Several Agencies Involved In Raids
POSTED: 1:02 pm EDT October 3, 2011
UPDATED: 4:52 pm EDT October 3, 2011
INDIANAPOLIS — Indianapolis police served several search warrants on Monday stemming from an ongoing investigation of human trafficking.
The warrants were served at what authorities described as so-called massage parlors, including a business called Foot Reflexology off U.S. 31, near Shelby Street and Southport Road.
Several agencies are involved in the investigation. Though most of the raids were in Marion County, there was also a search of an undisclosed business in Fishers, in Hamilton County.
Little information was released, but sources told 6News’ Rafael Sanchez that the raids were part of a crackdown on businesses involved in illicit activity, with possible ties to human trafficking.
…
It was not immediately known how many suspected massage parlors were raided.
See the full article from “WRTV Indianapolis”
INDIANAPOLIS — Indianapolis police have raided several massage parlors as part of an ongoing investigation into human trafficking.
See the full article from “Greenfield Daily Reporter”
There’s an old saying in the world of sales and marketing: “You don’t sell the steak, you sell the sizzle.”
A recently launched billboard in Indianapolis is attempting to take the sizzle out of one kind of steak: tube steak.
The hot dog has become the culinary villain du jour as the billboard warns that “hot dogs can wreck your health” and shows hot dogs nestled in a cigarette pack.
Is that any way to treat a food so American it was included with “apple pie and baseball” in an old Chevrolet jingle?
Controversy and drama naturally intrigue the media. I’ve often thought that any story can be front page news if it contains three of the following four elements: a Congressman, food safety scare, massage parlor or handgun.
See the full article from “The Herald Bulletin”
The Thai Spa is at 11079 Village Square Lane in Fishers – near a daycare center. But Wednesday, the “OPEN” sign at The Thai Spa, also known as Thai Style Massage, was turned off – and it could be that way for a while. Police busted the business Tuesday for unlawful activity inside.
“We’ve been getting complaints from other business owners in the area of suspicious activity,” Fishers Officer Tom Weger said.
One of those complaining was Lori Oliver, owner of nearby God’s Miles Nursery and Pre-School.
“I just wanted to make sure the children were safe,” she told 24-Hour News 8.
Investigators said area businesses had complained that several men had mistaken their businesses for the massage parlor. After a three-week investigation, including setting up surveillance, police moved in.
See the full article from “WISH”
Police officers, firefighters and code enforcement agents swept into a dozen massage parlors looking for illegal activity. This was the 10th multi-agency raid on these types of businesses in Indianapolis.
More than 70 violations of local and state laws were uncovered. Many involved unlicensed parlors and massage therapists.
“The purpose we’re out here and the reason why we do these kinds of sweeps is to make sure we’re protecting the quality of life for neighborhoods and citizens of Indianapolis,” said Adam Collins with the Department of Code Enforcement.
Officials say the businesses that were raided were chosen because of prostitution complaints. However, no one was arrested for prostitution in this particular sweep.
See the full article from “Fox 59″
Massage parlor sweep nets 77 violations
Updated: Thursday, 11 Nov 2010, 11:46 AM ESTPublished : Thursday, 11 Nov 2010, 11:37 AM EST
INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) – The city conducted its 10th multi-agency sweep Wednesday on 11 massage parlors in Marion County.
During the sweep, 77 violations were given out. Eleven citations were issued for unlicensed massage parlors, and 14 citations were issued for unlicensed massage therapists. Other violations discovered include such things as: illegal signage, dwelling unit in a commercial district, unenclosed dumpsters, insufficient parking lot paving/striping, evidence of smoking in a place of employment, exposed wiring, electrical hazards and missing or unmounted fire extinguishers.
“This coordinated effort among multiple agencies serves as an example of how government should operate to enforce state and local laws and to prevent illegal activity from taking root in our community. Sweeps like these are an important part of our efforts to improve the quality of life for every Indianapolis resident,” said Mayor Greg Ballard.
Massage parlors are one of the 24 business types that require a license from The Department of Code Enforcement.
See the full article from “WISH”