The New York Police Department (NYPD) has shut down several brothels in the borough of Queens in a major sting operation. Officers found “inhumane conditions” at the brothels, which were running as massage parlors, and closed down a total of 12 establishments. Following the operation, Mayor Adams tweeted that prostitution is not a victimless crime and involves trafficking and abuse. “There are so many concerns in our communities, and we are taking action,” he wrote.
Mr. Adams praised Councilman Francisco Moya for bringing the issue to police attention and “pushing the buttons and getting this going.” NYPD Assistant Commissioner Kaz Daughtry added that the police intend to follow up on this operation and enact several more, saying everything within the law will be done to close the illegal establishments down.
The New York Post reported last year that the number of brothels in the Big Apple has exploded in recent years, partly prompted by a mass immigration surge into the city. According to the Post’s report, the industry carries on in broad daylight and in the open, and even children are recruited to hand out leaflets advertising their trade in massage parlors in Queens.
Many of the “services” are offered by immigrant women who “are flooding the city,” and the numbers are so high that local prosecutors have decided not to bring charges. One woman described how brothels cooperate and share the market rather than compete. Councilman Francisco Moya said he has lived in the area his whole life but has “never seen it get to this point.”
Police stopped arresting individual prostitutes back in 2017 after one woman jumped to her death during a pursuit. The 38-year-old offered her services to an undercover cop, and when he revealed he was a law enforcement officer, she leaped from a window onto the sidewalk below. She later died at Booth Memorial Hospital.
Prostitution is illegal in New York, and the most common charges are Patronizing a Prostitute and Promoting Prostitution.
