Prostitution Ring Arrest in College Park
In last night’s Council meeting, we had an interesting discussion on recent prostitution sting operation that happened over the break time in December.
This is the third time, Police ran this kind of sting operation arresting 37 from one of College Park hotels. In August last year, police nabbed 30 in a similar operation.
I would believe the issue is a temporary or a declining one, but I don’t see any sign of abating. Every time the police makes this kind of operation in the city, it arrests 2 to 3 dozens people.
So far the City Council has asked the hotels to stop partial day rental, but I wonder should we do more? What about we take lessons from other cities that have similar problems?
True, College Park has an ever increasing number of hotels, all along Route 1 that could be serving as magnets for prostitutes and their clients, but should we accept that as a reality of life and a non-stoppable crime issue?
I understand news media loves to bring news like this with much sensation. But, sensational or not, I think the prostitution news is working against our effort to promote the city as the best place to live and work. We can hide our faces in the sand and pretend nothing has happened, but that does not do any good to fix the problem.
Many of the hotels in north College Park are close to single family houses in residential neighborhoods. I’ve also heard complaints from residents saying that they often see prostitution related activities on their streets near Route 1. Could these activities be related to prostitution activities in the hotels?
The Council hopes to discuss the issue along with other public safety related issues in another upcoming work session some time in February. I’d love to hear from you what you think about the whole issue.