Houston-area man speaks out after being arrested in two major prostitution stings

Tony Bunch was arrested for a second time this year as part of prostitution stings. His first mugshot from February is on the left and the one from October is on the right. Swipe through to see mugshots of the other men and women arrested in the latest Harris County prostitution sting. less Tony Bunch was arrested for a second time this year as part of prostitution stings. His first mugshot from February is on the left and the one from October is on the right. Swipe through to see mugshots of the ... more Photo: Harris County Sheriff's Office/ Harris County Constable Precinct 4 Photo: Harris County Sheriff's Office/ Harris County Constable Precinct 4 Image 1 of / 65 Caption Close Houston-area man speaks out after being arrested in two major prostitution stings 1 / 65 Back to Gallery

One of the men arrested this month in connection to a street-level prostitution ring in north Harris County was netted in a similar sting earlier this year.

Tony Bunch, of Spring, was arrested for the second time this year following lengthy criminal investigations by Houston law enforcement into prostitution rings. Police announced the latest sting arrests Thursday, which netted more than 40 suspects.

The story of the 49-year-old's latest arrest began Oct. 4 about 4 p.m. when he went to a gas station near FM 1960 to fill up his truck before meeting with a man to buy a cell phone, Bunch told Chron.com Friday morning. Bunch had just gotten out of work from his job at a railroad company.

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A woman was standing near him at a gas pump, Bunch said.

"She's pretty, a nice-looking lady," he recalled, "She smiles real big at me. I'm a single guy, I smile back at her and she says 'hi.' She says, 'Can you help a girl out?'"

The woman approached Bunch and he asked what she had in mind. The woman told him her rates for services. Bunch agreed to the rate for sex.

He claims at some point during this conversation, he began to regret his decision and tried to back out of the deal. Before he knew it, police officers swarmed the gas station, Bunch said.

"I didn't touch her or give her money. She initiated every bit of it," Bunch said. "Initially, I made a poor decision but I tried to correct it. Why can't you let a guy have a break?"

Bunch was charged with "prostitution public payment of," according to court documents.

Bunch has since retained Edward Okwueze as an attorney and his next court date is Nov. 14.

"Based on what the police reports reads, it sounds like my guy might have made contact with

the young lady. His story is that she made eye contact with him and approached him without

him even telling her to come up to him. Its sounds like this could be an entrapment situation," Okwueze told Chron.com.

Bunch was first arrested in February when a sting by the Harris County Sheriff's Office lead to 178 arrests. His arrest happened during the 13th annual National Johns Suppression Initiative, which ran Jan. 18 to Feb. 5, Super Bowl Sunday. It was the highest total of any of the nearly 30 participating agencies nationwide, the department said.

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In that sting, Bunch was formally charged with "prostitution nonpublic pay fee," according to Harris County District Court documents obtained by Chron.com. His case was dismissed in March, according to court documents. Bunch was represented by Grace Lee Connelly in this case, according to court documents. When reached, Connelly declined to comment on why Bunch's case was dismissed.

Bunch claims he was told by the court to complete 24 hours worth of community service and an online decision making course in order to have his case dismissed.