A 49-year-old Dayton man has been indicted on six felony charges for allegedly running a prostitution ring that employed as many as 35 prostitutes in the region, according to law enforcement.

Kevin Barker faces charges of engaging in a pattern of corrupt activity, promoting prostitution and possessing criminal tools. He faces a maximum of 14 years in prison and as much as $62,500 in fines, according to the Montgomery County Prosecutor’s office.

In May 2011, police busted a prostitute during an undercover investigation, and she told detectives she worked for an escort agency in the area, said Dayton police Detective Raymond St. Clair.

Police launched an investigation that allegedly found that Barker was operating an escort agency that posted sexual advertisements on the online classified website Backpage.com and on its own now-defunct website, Peekaboodayton.com, St. Clair said.

St. Clair said Barker employed about 35 prostitutes, and his agency received about 100 calls, text messages and e-mails each day from interested customers. The agency’s website featured profiles of women and rates, but it has a message that says it does not “condone or support any kind of prostitution activity.”

But St. Clair said the agency dispatched prostitutes to meet with clients who answered its advertisements. He said the agency charged clients about $80 just for the girls to show up at appointments, and the agency kept those earnings. He said the girls charged separately for sexual activities, which is commonly referred to as “working for tips” in the commercial sex industry.

St. Clair said this may have been the largest alleged prostitution ring to operate locally. He said the agency evidently recruited its prostitutes from street corners and strip clubs in the region.

“I don’t think he was dispatching 35 girls a day — he may just have three or four work each day,” he said. “But he’s a pimp.”

Barker was released from jail after posting bond, officials said.

Contact this reporter at (937) 225-0749 or cfrolik@DaytonDailyNews.com.