Craigslist, Prostitution Link Charged
This article is from the archive of The New York Sun before the launch of its new website in 2022. The Sun has neither altered nor updated such articles but will seek to correct any errors, mis-categorizations or other problems introduced during transfer.
New York City law enforcement officials need to crack down on the new “Wild West” of prostitution, the Internet — and specifically the popular Web site Craigslist, City Council Member Eric Gioia said yesterday.
“What used to happen on seedy street corners and brothels has now moved to the Internet,” Mr. Gioia, who is a likely candidate for public advocate in 2009, said at a news conference.
He drew particular attention to Craigslist, where he said the majority of ads for “erotic services” in New York are thinly disguised solicitations for sex.
Mr. Gioia said his office had contacted Craigslist but had not received a response. In the past year, Craigslist-oriented stings in Chicago, Minneapolis, and Nassau County have resulted in more than 140 arrests, he said.
Representatives of Craigslist could not be reached for comment yesterday.
The site does prompt New York users to report “exploitation of minors” to the New York State Division of Criminal Justice Services.
A spokesman for the state agency, John Caher, said yesterday that enforcement is “a needle in a haystack search.” He said the agency has received “three or four” complaints of sexual exploitation of minors on Craigslist in the last year.
“Although we do monitor it, what we really rely on are tips from people who know or suspect what’s going on,” Mr. Caher said.
