Several police departments conduct prostitution sting; four busted in Southborough
SOUTHBOROUGH — Prostitution stings have traditionally resulted in the arrest of women who were hired for sex, even though many were acting against their will.
But as part of a multi-agency prostitution sting Wednesday, investigators instead targeted those who want to sexually exploit women, according to Southborough Police Chief Ryan Newell.
"We're not trying to prosecute the women involved," said Newell. "A lot of them have been forced into this life. A lot of these women are taken advantage of. We want to do our part to stop that kind of behavior from taking place."
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Southborough police teamed with the Northborough and Westborough police departments, as well as the Massachusetts State Police and the Worcester County Sheriff's Office, to conduct Wednesday's sting. Planning had started last year.
Police set up a fake ad on a website advertising a woman offering sexual services at an unnamed hotel in Southborough, Newell said.
The hotel, as well as others in Northborough and Westborough, have been used for prostitution in the past, the chief said.
"They (hotel management) want to clean up the problem as well," Newell said.
The advertisement drew four men to the hotel, and each was arrested and charged with sexual conduct for a fee.
Those arrested were Bryan Anderson, 35, of Marlborough; Daniel Gebremichael, 48, of Worcester; Newash Ghishing, 23, of Worcester; and Joshua Young, 47, of Hudson.
Newell said some people believe such stings are not a good use of police time, but he and others in law enforcement disagree.
“Those who claim that these types of law enforcement operations are a waste of taxpayer money are not seeing the victims behind the crime," Newell said. "Most often the women involved in prostitution rings are victims of human trafficking, suffer from a serious drug addiction or have suffered from many types of mental or physical abuse. Those who seek out and patronize this commercial sex industry should be held accountable for their actions and contributions to this cycle of abuse."
All four men were released without bail after their arraignments Thursday in Westborough District Court. They're due back in court on April 28 for pretrial conferences.
Norman Miller can be reached at 508-626-3823 or nmiller@wickedlocal.com. For up-to-date public safety news, follow him on Twitter @Norman_MillerMW or on Facebook at facebook.com/NormanMillerCrime.
This article originally appeared on MetroWest Daily News: Prostitution sting leads to four arrests in Southborough
