Girls, 13, 16, taken off street during prostitution sweep

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 22/07/2010 (5913 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

A police sweep for prostitution netted girls aged 13 and 16 trying to sell themselves for sex.

Police said the two girls were caught during a crackdown from 6 p.m. Tuesday to 3 a.m. Wednesday near Kate and Juno Streets.

The girls were not charged and were turned over to their families.

Police arrested four adult women — aged 25, 26, 28 and 42 — and charged them with communication for the purpose of prostitution.

No johns were arrested in connection with the sweep, but one vehicle was impounded after police said the driver, who didn’t have a licence, was seen "interacting" with a sex-trade worker.

"Making the arrests weren’t our focus on this," said Const. Jason Michalyshen.

"Our focus was to identify, specifically in this case, some of the youth that were… involved in the sex trade."

Community complaints prompted Project Return.

Residents of the Centennial neighbourhood said they’ve complained extensively about prostitution.

"It’s really, really uncomfortable," said Patricia Thunder, who added she could see police lights flashing Tuesday night from her home on Bannatyne Avenue.

"Our kids have asked us if we can move."

However, most residents interviewed by the Free Press expressed concern sex-trade workers will return to the area.

One woman pointed to three area homes where she said sex-trade workers live.

Another neighbour said she’s used to seeing sex-trade workers lean up against her fence at night, and hang out in her back driveway during the day. She and her husband said after 10 p.m., the block is busy with traffic.

"They could catch a lot of guys," she said. "I don’t understand why they didn’t do that."

Police said they spent time observing the area on Tuesday night before making the arrests.

Michalyshen said one of the girls needed medical attention.

Officials from the Child Protection Branch were also present to deal with the young girls.

"We were also identifying who the johns were and taking down licence plates, and watching who’s circling the neighbourhoods," said April Lahn-Ladobruk, a StreetReach worker.

Police said they hope such measures prevent people from being victimized by violence.

Last summer, police announced a joint task force with the RCMP dedicated to reviewing cases of 84 slain and missing women.

It came after the death of 17-year-old Cherisse Houle, a sexually exploited female whose body was dumped in a field in the RM of Rosser.

Her death was deemed suspicious.

"Being involved in the sex trade, you don’t know who you’re going to come across," Michalyshen said.

"You don’t know what their capabilities are, you don’t know what their intentions are, and we certainly don’t want anybody to be put in that situation."

Officers from the vice unit, tactical support team, street crimes unit, missing persons unit, and Division 11 community support unit were part of the project, though police did not say how many officers took part.

The Salvation Army, which runs prostitution diversion programs for sex-trade workers and johns, was also involved in the sweep.

 

gabrielle.giroday@freepress.mb.ca