Making a ‘date’ with ...

Marisa O’Neil

Amid the office parks, near the IKEA store, and a stone’s throw from

a law school, women who work in the world’s oldest profession ply

their trade.

And the men who keep them in business troll Harbor Boulevard

looking for a “date.”

Friday evening and into the wee hours of Saturday, members of the

Costa Mesa Police Department worked to clear the street, focusing on

prostitutes’ customers: johns. By 9 p.m., they had arrested two

suspected prostitutes, and nine men were charged with soliciting or

loitering to solicit a prostitute.

By the time the sting was over, they’d arrested four suspected

prostitutes, two dozen alleged johns, and one suspected pimp.

It’s part of the constant battle to move the prostitutes out of

the north end of town. The area of Harbor Boulevard that borders

Santa Ana has gained a reputation as a place to pick them up, police

said.

“They’re out here because people know it’s a place to come,” Lt.

Les Gogerty said.

Since the beginning of May -- and before Friday’s sting operation

-- police have arrested more than a dozen women on suspicion of

prostitution.

The warm weather brings out more women and customers looking for

them, Gogerty said.

Most of the women come from out of town and work a circuit,

drifting from city to city, Sgt. Mike Ginther said. Costa Mesa

somehow worked its way onto that circuit about 10 years ago, Ginther

said.

The prostitutes generally stick to the areas on and around Harbor

Boulevard between Gisler Avenue and MacArthur Boulevard, straddling

Santa Ana and Costa Mesa. Large parking lots and sparsely populated

office complexes give them a fair amount of privacy to complete their

deals.

“It’s on the edge of both cities, and it’s close to the freeway,”

Gogerty said. “There’s easy access and a lot of traffic.”

Friday, vice and narcotics officers started the evening by

clearing out some of the competition before putting undercover female

officers on the street.

At about 6 p.m., as rush hour traffic lurched past, two women

wearing short shorts and high heels slowly walked north on Harbor

Boulevard. They crossed a grassy median into an office parking lot as

a car pulled in.

After a brief conversation, the car pulled away. But two more

pulled in. The two women eventually got in a car driven by an

undercover officer.

They were charged with prostitution, and their clothes were

confiscated. After booking, suspected prostitutes are released from

the city jail on a written promise to appear in court. They are given

a paper jumpsuit to wear.

Once the two women were off the street, scantily clad female

officers took their places.

Some drivers nearly crashed as they turned their heads for a

second or third look. Within minutes, the driver of a black Honda

Accord pulled up to talk.

As the undercover officer talked to the driver, a second car

stopped nearby, and the passenger-side window quickly rolled down.

When police swooped in to arrest the Honda driver, the other car

backed out and slowly drove off.

Police arrested their first man on suspicion of soliciting a

prostitute. And it wasn’t even dark yet.

From there, the arrests came quickly.

Some cars circled like sharks. Some drivers talked to the women,

but had apparent changes of heart and drove away.

Others left and came back, only to be arrested on the return trip.

Once arrested, an officer drove them in a patrol car to a nearby

parking lot for booking. They were questioned, searched and

photographed.

Their shoes were removed and the arrestees were placed in a

waiting paddy wagon.

Meanwhile, another officer drove the arrestee’s car to a lot where

it was searched for illegal items. Then it was towed away to an

impound yard.

One officer found a john’s wedding ring in the car’s center

console.

Another arrestee lamented that he wouldn’t be able to pick up the

takeout food he’d ordered to take to his girlfriend’s house.

Those arrested went to the city jail and were released on a

written promise to appear. They face possible fines if convicted of

soliciting a prostitute or loitering to solicit, both misdemeanors.

But, police hope they won’t be back. Officers plan to conduct

stings and arrest suspected prostitutes and customers throughout the

summer and the rest of the year, Ginther said.

“It’s a tough thing to do,” Gogerty said of cleaning up the

streets. “But we try to be as proactive as possible.”

Costa Mesa police arrested the following people on suspicion of

soliciting prostitution or loitering to solicit prostitution: Serafin

Sotello, 43, Anaheim; Jose Luis Villa-Varela, 26, unknown city;

Candido Dominguez, 32, Santa Ana; Jose Daniel Crespo, 47, Los

Angeles; Marvin Quijano Carlos, 25, Irvine; Jose Hector Anaya, 39,

Costa Mesa; Celestino Ruvalcaba, 53, Costa Mesa; James Cauton, 31,

Santa Ana; Salvador Garcia, 35, Los Angeles; Alberto Perete, 19, city

unknown; Michael Sutherland, 39, Mission Viejo; Rudy Martinez, 21,

Costa Mesa; Eduardo Carona, 31, Santa Ana; John Broderick, 54,

Huntington Beach; Brian Morita, 28, Monterey Park; Martin Benitez,

36, Santa Ana; Carlos Castillo-Herrera, 27, Las Vegas; Adan Nolasco,

26, Costa Mesa; Prakash Athiveeraramapanvian, 27, Costa Mesa; Jeffrey

Alix, 48, Laguna Hills; Vincent Murphy, 38, Costa Mesa; Efrain

Sanchez, 20, Long Beach; Harry Hidalgo, 27, Lake Forest; Melquicedec

Quiroz, 34, Santa Ana.

Police arrested four women on suspicion of prostitution: Anna

Maria Otano and Debra Rodriguez, ages and cities unavailable;

Cassandra Cuellar, 20, and Tiffany Hill, 18. Fairfield resident

Kenneth Jenkins, 34, was arrested on suspicion of pimping.