HPD prostitution sting nets Houston cop among 139 clients

MUGSHOTS: Almost 140 men arrest in Houston PD sex sting at former brothel ... Almost 140 men, including a Houston police officer, were arrested during a 10-day sting at former massage parlor turned brothel that was taken over earlier this month by the Houston Police Department, officials announced Thursday, Oct. 26, 2016. less MUGSHOTS: Almost 140 men arrest in Houston PD sex sting at former brothel ... Almost 140 men, including a Houston police officer, were arrested during a 10-day sting at former massage parlor turned brothel that ... more Photo: File/Houston Chronicle Photo: File/Houston Chronicle Image 1 of / 203 Caption Close HPD prostitution sting nets Houston cop among 139 clients 1 / 203 Back to Gallery

The flapping vinyl banner over the storefront in a west Houston stripmall proclaimed "Under New Management," and apparently told customers everything they needed to know about the illicit business inside.

Almost 140 men, including a Houston police officer, found out too late that the new management were actually undercover vice officers operating the massage parlor that had been a well-known underground brothel in the past. Dozens of men including two attorneys, a teacher and the police officer, were arrested earlier this month during a 10-day sting, law officials announced Thursday.

"These 139 individuals are part of the reason the sex trade is alive here in Houston," said Houston Police Department Chief Art Acevedo, as he stood next to a wall at police headquarters lined with 100 mugshots of suspects. "These men should be ashamed."

Photo: Brian Rogers/Houston Chronicle Almost 140 men, including a Houston police officer, were arrested...

Formerly known as the "7 Star Spa" at 11316 Westheimer, the massage parlor with seven private rooms, two stand-up shower rooms and a kitchen/laundry room had a long history of prostitution busts before it was shuttered in 2016, officials said.

Springboarding on that notorious reputation, police officers with HPD's vice division reopened it on Oct. 6 as "8 Star Spa," and officers masqueraded as employees to secure arrests. Most of the men were arrested at the brothel after money changed hands, and they were then booked into jail.

Acevedo said the undercover police charged the average rate in Houston of $60 as a door fee and $120 for sex acts.

A blueprint provided at Thursday's press conference showed a floor plan that included makeshift sleeping quarters and a "dungeon" with shackles, apparently to keep women against their will when it was a working bordello.

"These women are not engaging in prostitution because they want to," Acevedo said. "They're doing it because they're being coerced."

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Asked about the officer who was arrested in the sting, Acevedo did not name him, saying civil service guidelines prohibited him from releasing the identity or firing the officer while the case is being investigated. The chief said the officer had been put on leave while the case is pending.

However, Acevedo took the opportunity to emphasize the arrest demonstrates HPD can be trusted to investigate and arrest officers accused of wrongdoing.

"We're very open and transparent that we've arrested one of our own. We're not trying to hide that," the chief said. "Once again, this police department has demonstrated that when one of our own came in and solicited prostitution, he found himself in handcuffs, in jail, just like everybody else."

Photo: Brian Rogers/Houston Chronicle Almost 140 men, including a Houston police officer, were arrested...

Around Houston's criminal courthouse, defense lawyers with clients who had been arrested in the sting have groused for weeks over whether HPD should be spending resources operating brothels instead of arresting brothel owners. The attorneys spoke on the condition that they were not identified for fear of putting their client's cases in the spotlight when they come to court.

HPD vice officer Angela Merritt said "Operation 8 Star" cost about $20,000 in overtime and personnel. There was no rent, electricity or other expenses relating to the property because the landlord donated those overhead costs in a bid to cooperate in cleaning up the area.

Merritt also said the ethnicity of the "johns" were 70 percent white. She said 11 percent were black, 9 percent were Asian, Hispanics were 5 percent and 3 percent were Indian.

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The data was part of information that officials are collecting as they look at new ways to go after prostitution and human trafficking.

Acevedo noted that for years law enforcement has focused on arresting the prostitutes, many of whom are being forced to work. Now, he said, police are going after the buyers.

"These women are often coerced and forced to have upwards of 15 to 30 sex buyers a day," he said.

Acevedo expressed hope these types of operations, and the public exposure from the publicizing of their name and mugshot, will discourage men from paying for sex.

Children At Risk, a non-profit organization that champions juvenile issues, has determined that there are 250 to 520 illicit massage parlors operating in Houston at any given time, Acevedo said.

Houston's illegal sex trade is divided into several different kinds of enterprises, Acevedo said.

About 60 percent of prostitution arrests are street walkers, while illicit massage parlors and spas make up about 11 percent of arrests. Brothels, modeling studios, escort services, bikini clubs, cantinas, bars and hotels or motels make up 30 percent of arrests, Acevedo said, adding the internet has made it easier to operate or hide these businesses.

Celena Vinson, a lawyer with the Harris County Attorney's Office, said county officials are working to close illegal businesses using state nuisance abatement laws.

"We had a cooperative landlord in this case," she said. "If you're not cooperative, we are going to let a district judge know that you are running or allowing an illegal business to operate that potentially harbors trafficking victims."