Six men and a juvenile face charges of soliciting prostitution in connection with an investigation by the West Alabama Human Trafficking Task Force.
The men were arrested during a recent operation targeting people who solicit commercial sex, said Stephanie Taylor, a spokeswoman for the Tuscaloosa Police Department, in a Sept. 24 news release.
The arrests were made, according to the news release, after the accused men responded to an online ad, arrived at the predetermined location and offered money in exchange for sex. The online ad had been placed by undercover officers.
The task force regularly conducts operations like this one to combat the demand for commercial sex, which contributes to human trafficking and the exploitation of vulnerable people.
The task force includes investigators from the Tuscaloosa, Northport, and University of Alabama police departments, as well as the Tuscaloosa County Sheriff’s Office.
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The six men were charged with soliciting prostitution, a Class A misdemeanor, and taken to the Tuscaloosa County Jail, with bond set at $300 each.
A similar operation in March also resulted in six arrests.
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This article originally appeared on The Tuscaloosa News: West Alabama undercover human trafficking sting leads to six arrests
