TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (WTXL) - Nine people are now facing charges after a prostitution bust in the Capital City this weekend.
Undercover officers busted six men and three women during a sting at the Hilton Homewood Suites hotel on Appalachee Parkway. Charges include soliciting a prostitute, agreeing to commit a lewd act, engagement in a sex offense, and for some, even drug possession.
The men answered an online ad and the women who posted on the classifieds website Backpage.com.
Samuel Agosto lives and works near the Homewood Suites hotel. He says the area is pretty quiet, but lately, he has noticed some troubling changes.
"I made the connection to this one lady who didn't really seem like a tourist. She just seemed really off and I think she was barefooted," said Agosto. "She just was sort of walking up and down. I think she tried to stop a car, or they did stop and talk to her. It caught my attention."
Officer David Northway says the Tallahassee Police Department does stings like this every few months, and they often rely on community tips when picking a hotel to target.
"The types of crimes that we're talking about affect our community members, our business owners," said Northway. "We will speak with community members who may say that we're seeing an uprise over in this location of town and believe there's some illegal activity going on."
Northway says these kinds of arrests send a strong statement: if you engage in prostitution, you will get busted, because people in Tallahassee are watching.
"I'm definitely going to keep my eyes open and pay attention," said Agosto.
