Nine men arrested in second reverse prostitution sting
Nine men were arrested in North Shelby County after a second undercover reverse prostitution sting, according to the Shelby County Drug Enforcement Task Force.
The operation was carried out along the U.S. 280 corridor on Thursday, Oct. 18, and the men were charged with the crime of soliciting prostitution, among other charges. Those men are:
- Abhinav Gautam, 23, Birmingham
- Bruce Beasley, 53, McMinnville, TN
- Charles Herron, 23, Mountain Brook
- Damion Simon, 41, Birmingham
- Dennis Cauch, 41, Frankfort, KY
- Edgar Garcia, 34, Vestavia Hills
- Robert Jernigan, 33, Birmingham
- Samuel Montoya, 21, Birmingham
- Zyon Bradford, 19, Birmingham.
The first sting took place on Sept. 20, and is part of an effort to curb human trafficking and drug trafficking, which often go along with prostitution, Captain Clay Hammac with the Shelby County Drug Enforcement Task Force said.
“This is only the second operation of what is expected to be an ongoing effort throughout Shelby County in the months to come,” Hammac said in a news release. “The motivation behind these efforts is to demonstrate a zero-tolerance for criminal solicitation and to aggressively attack the demand for these type enterprises.”