Police sting

[Cute0aza0Button 21399]

http://www.cbc.ca/m/news/#!/content/1.2513112

 

Aimed at human trafficking, or so they say. I can't imagine how is feel if I was one of those ladies.

[Luscious.Tianna 12254]

I truly dont feel that they were trying to scare us, it was a routine check, sort of the same as when the city comes to inspect any business.

The officers werent rude, and didnt really snoop around, they did ask for names and dates of births but also said that it wasnt mandatory to give that information to them.

Theyre looking for under age girls, as well as girls that are being forced into this business... I know because of the industry we work in its hard for us to be comfortable around the cops, but they are just trying to protect the girls that may need protecting

[marriedbutnotdead 3844]

There was a lady in chat last week saying she had the same visit, She is located in Kanata and all is good with her.

[Luscious.Tianna 12254]

When they came they said that they were doing a check in all of the spas in Canada, if your polite with them, they will be in and out quickly :)

[Studio 110 by Sophia 150333]

A few Years ago, I was visited as well. He claimed he wanted to see my location before booking, I was a bit new to this as without thinking, said sure come over have a coffee. He looked around, asking if I had kids, did I live with a man? Stated how nice and clean my place was and then shook my hand saying" so nice to see a proper business in Fredericton" then left. I knew then I just was investigated to see if I had anything sketchy going on.

 

I took it with grace and was sort of glad and relieved that the cops were doing their job with diligence. As just a short while after this, an agency was busted for having a 15 year old working and on drugs.

 

I say if the cops do not know who Sophia is, then they are doing a terrible job at keeping my community safe. Nice to see my taxes are at work.

 

But yes it would be very intimidating, I hope my lady friends are doing OK with this.

[Kathryn Bardot 99339]

I think it's great that some people who received visits felt at ease with the police. However, there are reports from some workers who felt intimidated. From what I hear, the police who visited spas came with a female officer and left business cards. Some of the independent providers who received a visit received four male officers and a number written on a scrap of paper. That's a big difference in how the visits were conducted. Also, a spa is a space that is publicly known, and there is usually more than one attendant present. Most incall locations are not -- that's why independent providers do not list their addresses in their ads. The police booked with independents as a guest, meaning that provider was expecting a client, not four police officers. Think about the power dynamics when you have a single, usually female provider, who may be dressed in lingerie, alone with four men.

 

Nat and I were discussing this and she gave me the perfect comparison: what if the police went around knocking on all the doors of married people to find victims of domestic violence? I doubt that would be very well received.

 

I would also be curious as to whether any male providers were visited. Or do the police think that only female providers can be victims of trafficking?

[Luscious.Tianna 12254]

Very well put Kathryn

I never looked at it that way, and because I work in a spa, we did have a female officer present

I could totally see it as being very intimidating if four men had shown, up even though I work in a spa and there is always another attendant here I would still find it a little intimidating

[Jabba 18389]

http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/hamilton/news/ontario-woman-arrested-in-trafficking-of-teen-sex-worker-1.2509823

 

Edit: Thought I should also include a few comments for my link posts above and below - these articles may offer further insight.

 

The cops in my experience are pretty straight-up. Don't fuck with them & they won't fuck with you. The police have seen it all & they've been around the block more than a few times. The cops don't just barge in your home or establishment without your permission & make accusations. The media loves to make a story, so take newspaper articles with an extra large grain of salt.

 

Know your rights, protect yourself & citizen privileges.

You don't have to admit anyone through your door without proper identification & search documents.

 

https://nfa.ca/resource-items/search-warrants-police-are-your-door-what-do-you-do

[Bugsbunny 110]

This is a very interesting situation.

 

On one hand, I think that it is about time that the police are actually tryig to do something about human trafficking in this country. On the other hand, it is disturbing to see the headline on the CBC link that was posted. Specifically, "..pose as clients and search escorts' homes".

 

Nothing in the article dealt with any aspect of any search that may have been conducted, but I would think that the police would have no authority to conduct a search.

 

Recently in Burlington (I assume a part of the national initiative against human trafficking) a 15 year old was found to be under the control of a 22 year old woman who was charged.

 

I can accept the idea of a random visit to ensure that underage and/or people being used against their will are not involved in the industry, but when it comes to searches and other types of invasive practices, I become offended that those things are allowed.

[canuckhooker 19202]

Funny how the spa visits seemed to be more reasonable then the visits to independents. If the police were truly trying to reach out, then they would not have used subterfuge to book an appointment, nor would they have shown up with four uniformed officers. Whether the in-call was a hotel, an apartment or a house, 4 uniformed police officers showing up is bound to be noticed. Certainly not discrete, and could even be considered a show of force.

 

I tend to come down on the side of LE a lot because they have a tough job to do and often get unfairly judged. In this case however, it looks like intimidation and harassment in the guise of something else. They say they had good intentions but it was poorly thought out.

[IsaMassage 54318]

In my case I find police intimidating all the time. . Even on traffic stops I get super nervous.. even if I have done nothing wrong they just scare me... I am a chicken.. I can not imagine how it would be to have 4 of them showing up at your door.. and being alone... Like canuck said even if they had good intentions they certainly did not proceed accordingly and instead of showing the ladies support it shows intimidation and harassment.

[Kathryn Bardot 99339]

I don't know why the CBC is reporting the officers as being in uniform, but from what I understand they were in plain clothes. Still, announcing themselves as OPS at the door is not being very discreet.

[fortunateone 156618]

I don't know why the CBC is reporting the officers as being in uniform, but from what I understand they were in plain clothes. Still, announcing themselves as OPS at the door is not being very discreet.

 

 

 

I think they handled it badly, but i also think they intended to handle it badly when it came to the independent sps working alone.

 

I don't think any reasonable person would think that 4 officers would be needed when they go to a location knowing the sp is expecting a single male appointment guest. There is little chance anyone else will be there, and if there was someone else there it would be at most one person, female.

 

They only needed 4 officers to go into a spa, a place with several rooms and multiple people, but they think that is sufficient. But two officers at a single indy sp wouldn't be? And all male as well, ?

 

 

I think ensuring the safety of an sp who advertises above a certain minimum age and has what is obviously a professional and business like ad/site is a waste of time and resources, so I can only assume the intention was a shake down.

[mod 135639]

Personally.... I suspect this is all because of the laws being challenged and changed. I suspect the powers that be are going to do stuff like this so they can "prove" that all this bad stuff they are desperately looking for exists (and if you look hard enough in any business you will find bad people doing bad things). Once again the ladies human rights are being pushed aside... If the police get a tip that someone is being pimped well that is one thing (get a warrant, search the house and then your doing good) but to randomly make fake calls to indie ladies without any evidence to back a search warrant and using this as an excuse to search for pimps!??!?!? Ladies are getting a LOT more organized these days and working together, if they keep doing stuff like this we are going to see a lot more court cases as individually most are scared to fight back and allow human rights to be infringed on (they accept that harassment and intimidation is part of it) but with the internet and community forums sites like cerb and others.... the ladies are no longer alone and are starting to stand up for themselves finally!

[Kathryn Bardot 99339]

The cops in my experience are pretty straight-up. Don't fuck with them & they won't fuck with you. The police have seen it all & they've been around the block more than a few times. The cops don't just barge in your home or establishment without your permission & make accusations. The media loves to make a story, so take newspaper articles with an extra large grain of salt.

 

Know your rights, protect yourself & citizen privileges.

You don't have to admit anyone through your door without proper identification & search documents.

 

https://nfa.ca/resource-items/search-warrants-police-are-your-door-what-do-you-do

 

First, they "fucked with" providers when they booked under false pretenses. They are claiming that they sat down with a number of organizations to discuss tactics before this operation, yet conveniently left out the ACTUAL voices of sex workers. Not one sex worker rights organization was contacted.

 

Secondly, no, the workers did not have to let the police in. However, if you were at an incall and had the police at your door announcing themselves as OPS, I can guarantee you'd let them in to avoid having your neighbours hearing. Once inside, the stories differ. One worker said they asked before looking into apartment rooms, she gave permission and that's all they did -- look. No doors opened. Another worker told them they did not have permission to search her location, yet they did, going so far as to open closet doors. When she got between them and the door, they told her that if she touched them it could be considered assault against an officer.

 

The only grain of salt I am taking in regards to what is being portrayed in the media is what is being said by Ottawa police. They issued a press release today that is just so factually incorrect: http://www.ottawapolice.ca/en/MediaRoom/NewsReleases/14-01-28/8c3172c6-7799-4b38-a93e-bd5ab9f0f4cf.aspx

 

"Over 330 women, some as young as 15 years of age, were interviewed. Police found some were being forced to perform sexual acts, multiple times a day, for paying male customers."

ONE person under the age of 15 was found, in Halton. ONE. That is not "some". http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/hamilton/news/ontario-woman-arrested-in-trafficking-of-teen-sex-worker-1.2509823

 

"In Ottawa, 16 officers from Central, West and East District participated in this initiative and a total of 29 women were interviewed, some as young as 19 years of age.

Officers utilized the internet to identify individuals involved in the sex trade and through investigation found their locations. Officers attended the locations and conducted interviews to determine the level of control, if any, being exercised."

 

 

Last I checked, 19 was legal. This is pure fear mongering. And were there any individuals being coerced? Who knows! They didn't say! (Hint: none. Johnston is quoted as saying so.)

 

 

They end the press release by commenting on a trafficking arrest that happened LAST YEAR. No sting required to catch that one! But hey, it makes us look good, and if we throw a blurb in about the individual being charged in 2014 maybe John Q. Public won't notice.

[Guest c**io**m7]

As far as I can tell, it seems they barked up the wrong tree with this one.

 

Visit well established indys? Visit well respected spas or agencies? Maybe they could've investigated a little deeper through the different boards and CK's diary and visited the right establishments and "Indy's".

 

Tax dollars at work.

[Katherine of Halifax 113931]

Well I had my very first visit today. This man has been calling me for some time and I could not believe that he was actually booking today as I have been pretty rude to him . He had asked many questions that were annoying and each time I checked him he stepped right back in line.

It started by him banging on my back door today and I told him to come around and enter the front door. When he came in he didn't want to take his shoes off in the porch and just stood there asking the same stupid questions like are we going to have sex and is oral on me extra. He must have gotten tired of my good answers and said he had an emergency and left as fast as he came in.

 

He really didn't seem like a cop but I can't figure out anything else.

[Satai 1933]

If they booked an appointment, then it seems to me that they should have to pay, no?

[Raven Rain 10542]

I think it's great that some people who received visits felt at ease with the police. However, there are reports from some workers who felt intimidated. From what I hear, the police who visited spas came with a female officer and left business cards. Some of the independent providers who received a visit received four male officers and a number written on a scrap of paper. That's a big difference in how the visits were conducted. Also, a spa is a space that is publicly known, and there is usually more than one attendant present. Most incall locations are not -- that's why independent providers do not list their addresses in their ads. The police booked with independents as a guest, meaning that provider was expecting a client, not four police officers. Think about the power dynamics when you have a single, usually female provider, who may be dressed in lingerie, alone with four men.

 

Nat and I were discussing this and she gave me the perfect comparison: what if the police went around knocking on all the doors of married people to find victims of domestic violence? I doubt that would be very well received.

 

I would also be curious as to whether any male providers were visited. Or do the police think that only female providers can be victims of trafficking?

wonderfully put.I agree with everything,especially the comparision

 

Additional Comments:

hey should have had to pay for their time

If they booked an appointment, then it seems to me that they should have to pay, no?

[Malibu-Jack 848]

Although I do not agree with how the police handled this situation. They sure could have handled it a different way.

 

I do however have big issues with people not doing this of there own free will and have even bigger issues when children are involved.

 

We Need a system the protects the innocent and protects legitimate providers.

[mod 135639]

Although I do not agree with how the police handled this situation. They sure could have handled it a different way.

 

I do however have big issues with people not doing this of there own free will and have even bigger issues when children are involved.

 

We Need a system the protects the innocent and protects legitimate providers.

 

Blindly (and randomly) calling ladies off ads on the internet in HOPES of finding someone being PIMPED is INSANE! Lets do some math here...

 

26 police services from across Canada (In ottawa alone this accounted for 16 officers who participated in this initiativ)... So lets say conservatively 200+ officers canada wide and at least a day's work each (Spent resources for this oppreation is probably well over 80'000.00).

 

Don't get me wrong, I would like to see all the underage girls removed along with all the pimps and sex slavery rings but this is NOT how you go about doing this. This is all intimidation and harassment and trying to dig up dirt they can feed to the bureaucrats and the media cause the laws are up in the air. This angers me so much!

 

Simple anonymous tips from the gentleman and ladies on cerb about pimps and underage girls to the police (Hell set up a help line and a anonymous report line) but to blindly target ladies off the internet. Someone needs to point a finger at the idiot that came up with that investigation plan!

[Cute0aza0Button 21399]

Although I do not agree with how the police handled this situation. They sure could have handled it a different way.

 

I do however have big issues with people not doing this of there own free will and have even bigger issues when children are involved.

 

We Need a system the protects the innocent and protects legitimate providers.

 

We do.

 

This is something that keeps getting forgotten. Exploitation is abd always will be illegal, as is having sex with minors and human trafficking.

 

I always get nervous when I open my door. I don't know how u would react to a police officer there. I know I don't have to let him in but I would because who wouldn't ? I know that I would be scared. I would probably act nervous and then what ? Do I seem suspicious now?

 

I'm glad that they got the fifteen year old but what about all the forks that were fine? They lost the revenue of the fake client, they might be feeling the repercussions from neighbours , landlords or hotels, that might have lost revenue for other sessions they missed due to timing or the fact that they were scared. I can tell you I wouldn't see anyone fit the rest of the day.

 

I love what I do. I feel like this was either the police throwing around their weight or ab extremely useless and misguided attempt to solve a problem tha t effects less than 1% of the people involved. That's not ok.

 

I don't know how to handle it. I don't pretend to be an expert. That's why we have ladies who have experience in this and advocacy groups. They should have been called on.

[Jabba 18389]

Although I do not agree with how the police handled this situation. They sure could have handled it a different way.

 

I do however have big issues with people not doing this of there own free will and have even bigger issues when children are involved.

 

We Need a system the protects the innocent and protects legitimate providers.

 

Good points all.

 

So let's put our collective selves on the hotseat & ask how you would handle this situation if you are the one who has to keep the peace. What do you do if you wear the badge?

 

Do you do an inner monologue and debate the finer points of law & liberty with yourself or do you try to rationalize your private life with your job or do you simply hold your nose & do your duty and dig out exploitive cocksuckers?

 

To me, it's a pretty simple equation (but then, I'm a slug, so what do I know). Does one solution fit all?... Obviously Not.

[Liv Waters 52360]

Blindly (and randomly) calling ladies off ads on the internet in HOPES of finding someone being PIMPED is INSANE! Lets do some math here...

 

26 police services from across Canada (In ottawa alone this accounted for 16 officers who participated in this initiativ)... So lets say conservatively 200+ officers canada wide and at least a day's work each (Spent resources for this oppreation is probably well over 80'000.00).

 

Don't get me wrong, I would like to see all the underage girls removed along with all the pimps and sex slavery rings but this is NOT how you go about doing this. This is all intimidation and harassment and trying to dig up dirt they can feed to the bureaucrats and the media cause the laws are up in the air. This angers me so much!

 

Simple anonymous tips from the gentleman and ladies on cerb about pimps and underage girls to the police (Hell set up a help line and a anonymous report line) but to blindly target ladies off the internet. Someone needs to point a finger at the idiot that came up with that investigation plan!

 

Thank you Mod, for putting it like it is. Far more damage and rights infringements are going on as a result of this initiative than so called 'good'. It's exhausting when people who access the services of SPs on a regular basis do not take the time to process the implications of it all; that is, before writing empty, self-righteous words about how it's good the police are protecting 'the exploited ones'. I refer here to a lot of the garbage I'm seeing on a couple of the other major boards I belong to.

 

Police are using a whole variety of highly problematic social profiling methods to target certain service providers, in particular. What do you think it does to a sex worker when a group of officers show up at their home or hotel?....it is distressing!...and will, in many cases, compromise the working situations that these SPs work so hard to set up under the radar.

 

Targeting a whole labour group in this fashion is WRONG. It further damages trust and alienates sex workers from the police. And, it fails to take into account the various reasons why those working under coercive or abusive conditions do not approach law enforcement and other authority figures in the first place. Sex workers of a variety of working circumstances are largely unable to report sexual assault to the police, that they have been robbed, or are experiencing stalking or harassment due to the stigma and the laws...We still don't know what's coming ahead in terms of policy, but we now have officers posing as paying clients to gain access to workers in our community. People are being intimidated into providing their ID....have their incall locations compromised, and, quite often are having their premises inspected in a similar fashion as would be expected when a search warrant is issued, but without any legal basis or grounds for doing so. On another board, I noted one person compare these situations as being a reasonable infringement similar to a ride stop to check for alcohol consumption....I could have reached through the screen. These scenarios are not comparable. Period.

 

Law enforcement and various other agencies acting as extensions of state power have a process of social reparation to undertake with the sex working community...to increase trust, respect, and to redefine what their future relationship will be with us, now that there is a cultural and policy shift where we are being recognized as citizens. This national initiative is greatly hampering such possibilities.

 

To serve and protect, my ass!!

[Cowboy kenny 50799]

Their is no doubt that one want's to be party to anything to do with trafficking or underage providers, but the police's tactic in this case was all wrong. Their actions in this case have created a distance and lack of trust on the part of many providers. How do they expect cooperation from providers when they've shown such a lack of respect for the very people they claim to be protecting? A few indies telling me that they were visited by 4-5 uniformed and in some cases plain clothes Male officers, and told only to call the officer who questioned them if they have info with regard to trafficking.

 

All other calls about "john stuff" should be made to the general number and in some cases not to contact their police liaison officers, their phone number left written on a scrap piece of paper. They were hardly discrete either, posting one officer outside apartments in the hallway while searches and "interviews" were conducted. Meanwhile licensed and unlicensed SPAs saw a more gentle and less intimidating approach with at least one female officer on scene and cards given out were proper business cards.

 

This looks particularly bad on the OPS as their approach and tactics are exactly the same as the reasons they brought disciplinary action against Sgt Rohan Beebakhee.

 

Sounds like a lot of back pedaling going on right now by the police http://www.ottawapolice.ca/en/MediaRoom/NewsReleases/14-01-28/8c3172c6-7799-4b38-a93e-bd5ab9f0f4cf.aspx

 

Of the 29 visits it seems a good lot where known established solo indy providers, over the age of 25, many who do not even advertise on BP or CL. I'm sure others were visited as well, but seems like they were wasting their time interviewing the older independents. As mentioned earlier they need only read my diary to get an idea of who might be "man"aged or trafficked.