By Joe Jarosz
Northeast News
September 3, 2014

KANSAS CITY, Missouri – Last Wednesday was not a good night if you were looking for a good time along the streets in the Northeast.

The East Patrol Division of the Kansas City, Mo., Police Department conducted an undercover VICE sting operation along sections of Independence Avenue and along portions of Prospect Avenue. The division sent out women officers dressed as prostitutes as well as used undercover male officers to try and broker a deal with existing prostitutes along the streets.

Major Rick Smith of the EPD said this was either the third or fourth sting operation the VICE squad conducted so far this summer. During the roughly seven-hour operation, the sting garnered 12 arrests, with charges ranging from solicitation, outdated warrants, possession of narcotics paraphernalia and patronizing prostitution. All prostitution related arrests were city infractions. Smith added the operations are usually held in the summer because during the colder months, there aren’t as many prostitution issues.

“Not a lot of people know about the operations, but we’re out here,” Smith said.

During a prostitution sting, the female officers will direct someone who’s looking for sex to a nearby location for them to “meet.” It’s then at this agreed upon location that uniformed officers will then arrest the person.

“There has to be a deal, an exchange of goods or money for sex,” Smith said, adding there’s usually specific lingo used for different sexual acts, as well.

Of the two versions of the sting, Smith said the one that has the better success rate is when female officers pretend to be prostitutes. The female officers don’t just get dropped off at a corner. Smith said there’s always at least one unmarked car nearby to watch the female officer.

“There are safety precautions in place for the officers,” Smith said.

For the undercover male officers, Smith said the VICE squad has a log of known prostitutes who frequent the Northeast area. Also, if women wave at cars or stay in a certain area for an extended period of time, those are also triggers that the undercover officers look out for.

So far in 2014, street prostitution arrests in Kansas City include:

Solicitation – 36

Patronizing – 17

Other city arrests – 12

Other State arrests – 3

State warrant arrests – 7

City warrant arrests – 11

Smith said these city-wide numbers do not include hotel sting operations, call out operations or parks.