The Lake County Sheriff's Office announced fourteen arrests Wednesday as the result of a multi-day human trafficking crackdown in suburban Gurnee.
According to a news release, the Lake County Sheriff's Special Investigations Group used classified advertising websites to lure customers, known as "Johns," to a Gurnee hotel.
When the "Johns" arrived and offered money to an undercover detective, they were arrested and taken to the Lake County Jail.
Photos: 14 Arrested in Sex Trafficking Crackdown in Lake County
Officials say the operation is part of a larger nationwide effort to suppress the demand for purchased sex, which has resulted in more than 10,000 arrests over the last decade.
"Many of the individuals selling sex are not doing so willingly, a large number are being forced into involuntary servitude," the sheriff's department said in a statement.
The "Johns" arrested in Lake County were each charged with one count of solicitation of a sexual act, a class A misdemeanor.
The arrests in Lake County include:
- Salvador Vicario, 61, of North Chicago
- Gregory D. Pahl, 53, of Twin Lakes, WI
- Carlos Reyes-Velez, 36, of Beach Park
- Mark K. Volpe, 62, of Highwood
- Steven P. Wilt, 62, of Gurnee
- Pedro Mendez-Gonzalez, 51, of Waukegan
- Timothy D. Christian, 37, of Waukegan
- Gustavo A. Cornelio-Garcia, 25, of Zion
- Roger C. Jimdar, 31, of Kenosha, WI
- John Powell, 38, of Waukegan
- Sean A. O’Reilly, 43, of Greendale, WI
- Jay Sawyer, 58, of Glenview
- Kyle E. Macgibbon, 59, of Libertyville
- Gregory J. Mason, 53, of Spring Grove
