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.
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