What I learned from Gentleman 100's Links
[QUOTE=Gentleman100;3916750]Be safe everyone.
Seattle Times (2016): [URL]https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/crime/seattle-pd-arrests-155-men-in-massage-parlor-sting-operation/[/URL].[/QUOTE]
[QUOTE=Gentleman100;3916913]
Be safe out there.
[URL]https://www.houstonchronicle.com/news/houston-texas/houston/article/Police-arrest-139-at-bogus-brothel-12310203.php[/URL][/QUOTE]Thanks to Gentleman 100, we have two good published articles.
The Seattle article seems most relevant to me. It clearly said that the women were offering specific sex acts for specific amounts of money. If the customer accepted the price and services, the customer was arrested. I had believed that that practice would be grounds for dismissal in a court case. It also seems that the business transitioned from Asian providers to Caucasian providers.
In the future, I'll stick with the Asian places where the girls have a thick accent and it is difficult to understand what they are saying. I also won't negotiate specific prices for specific services, even if she gives me the price list. In that case, my big head will tell my feet to start walking out the door, but the little head just might overrule the big head.
The Seattle and Houston sting operation thingys.
Brothers, relax and take a deep breath.
These stings were in 2016 and 2017. Both were setup by the police after the existing AMPs shut down (the reason for the shutdown is immaterial), and then reopened them "under new management" or whatever horseshit slogan they used. It should have set off all kind of alarms in a brother's big head. Both police departments also used Backpage to attract customers. It's likely that those customers were many of the same ones that used the old AMPs, and were happy read they were open again, and assumed that they were the same, but "better," or New and Improved! You can't fix stupid.
Now, none of the arrests at these AMPs were because of a raid. Both were sting operations. That means that customers voluntarily and happily visited to be arrested, and the police kindly obliged. Customers undoubtedly said the wrong thing, answered one of the test questions incorrectly, and / or grabbed a handful of passion fruit, and got busted. Old habits die hard when one is in what they falsely believe to be familiar surroundings. They were not familiar, they were new. Complacency is to brothers like Kryptonite is to Superman. Both should always be avoided.
Lesson one? Never forget the rules regarding what you answer and what you ask. Be wary of new AMPs that open, especially when at or near, where an existing one was shut down or recently closed. A new AMP in a new area should also be approached cautiously. Those are exploratory, low level missions with a report of findings here on USASG.
If an AMP is getting to be too much of a problem child, LE knows that if enough outside pressure is applied, AMPs will pick up and move to where there is less pressure, no raids or arrests needed. It's cheaper, faster and more cost effective to do that than raid a place, where even if convicted, probation is more likely than jail time. If LE wants an AMP to move out of the area, they can do that by just keeping a marked unit presence nearby and visible, causing a drop in business. No business can exist for very long without a steady stream of customers. Raids are unlikely, but cutting the flow of customers at a nuisance business that is a shady operation, is doable, easy, fast, and relatively inexpensive. After a few weeks of a trickle or no customers, it's time to move on.
Lesson two? Both of those stings used Backpage to advertise. What's one of the most common complaints we read on here? Where are the service providers advertising now! Brothers, if we can't figure that out, don't expect LE to do that either. They always go for the lowest hanging fruit on the tree. By getting Craigslist and Backpage shut down, they also effectively reduced their ability to run their own sting operations. Again, you can't fix stupid.
If there is by some cruel act of the universe, a raid and you happen to be there, say nothing but that you visited to get a massage. Nothing else. You've committed no crime they can prove, and getting a massage is not a crime. While it's possible an undercover LEO visited at an earlier time and is there to arrest a provider, which would be the only reason for a raid as they can't prove customers were committing crimes, they have no charges on you if you don't confess. You have the right to remain silent. Use it. If there is a raid, you will have to give your name, etc, because you are a "witness" or non-involved party, but you're not going to be arrested unless you proclaim "I paid for sex!" Regardless, the chance of a raid is probably less than getting hit by lightning in Florida. It's more likely LE will just keep a marked unit parked across the street, on the median, or on the sidewalk (because they can do that), to drive customers away if they want shut down the AMP.
All these AMPs have good security cameras with good coverage outside. They will see "it" coming if it happens. If it does, the providers will be in their scrubs uniform in under 30 seconds, remove any wrapper, tell you to get on your tummy, drape a towel across your ass, tell you to shut up, then be working the large muscle groups when the door flies open. The dream doesn't have to be a nightmare if one stays cool. Those news stories are what LE mainly uses to keep brothers wary, as they have neither the time, money, or resources to do stings on a regular basis, especially the the penalties are so light, and Craigslist and Backpage are gone.
"That's the rest of the story" as Paul Harvey would say.
