Accused prostitutes in court today

Photos: Prostitution sting nets 8 arrests

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By Denise Callahan, Staff Writer Updated 9:40 AM Tuesday, April 28, 2009

Eight women arrested for prostitution following a sting by the Warren County Sheriff’s Office are expected to appear in Mason Municipal Court this morning, April 28.

Using listings on the popular Web site Craigslist, detectives on Friday, April 24 called the women and invited them to a Deerfield Twp. motel, according to Warren County Sheriff Larry Sims.

Once at the hotel, the accused allegedly offered sex acts to undercover officers on camera and were arrested, Sims said.

Arrested and charged with misdemeanor solicitation were: Amanda Jeffery, 27, of Fairfield Tammi Hosmer, 37, of Cincinnati; Andrea Harris, 32 of Cincinnati; Holly Galvez, 25 of Cincinnati; Amanda Watson, 20 of Cincinnati; Jerene Oliver, 21 of Union, Ky.; Victoria Meija, 45, of Andersonville, Tenn.; and Andres Arellanes-Munoz, 28, of Chicago, Ill.

“In reality they are not advertising per se any criminal activity,” Sims said. “Usually they are advertising dances, massages, which is in most cases a cover for their prostitution activity.”

The arrests come in light of a recent arrest of Philip Markoff, who allegedly murdered a New York woman in Boston, Mass., he found on Craigslist. Markoff has been dubbed the Craigslist killer by law enforcement officials.

Sims said because of that news coverage a couple of people called and asked if there might be a Craigslist situation here, so Sims said they decided to set up the sting. It’s the second sting they have arranged in less than a year.

The Connecticut attorney general has called for the owner of Craigslist, Craig Newmark, to remove photographs from the erotic section of the web site, and crack down on questionable ads. Newmark says the site already officers clients a way to flag objectionable material, and he doesn’t want to intrude on the constitutional rights of people who advertise on the list.

Sims said they will continue to monitor Craigslist and other reports they occasionally receive that prostitutes are walking the streets in Warren County.

“There is no question we have some activity of prostitution in Warren County,” he said.

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