Prostitution Sting: 10 Arrested In Bust At A Pittsburgh Hotel

An undercover sting operation by the Pittsburgh police has led to the arrests of 10 individuals Wednesday linked to a prostitution ring.

Using phone numbers found online, on sites like Skip the Games and Escort Alligator, undercover police set up meetings with suspected members of the ring, which operated out of an unspecified hotel in the city.

Most of the suspects live in surrounding Pennsylvania counties.

According to criminal complaints submitted in the case, four of the 10 arrested had worked as prostitutes. They included Moriah Asefi, 29, and Clara Bass, 40, and Cody Singletary, 24. Scott Porter, 40, was listed as a woman and worked under the name “Desire."

The others arrested were Heather Madhat, 49, of Akron, Ohio, who drove Asefi to the meeting. Patricia Scarlett, 43, drove Bass to the hotel.

Russell Hogue, 39, and Kalil Bryant, 26, were charged with patronizing prostitutes.

Brian Funk, 26, and Joseph Chism, 22 — both passengers in one of the cars driven to the hotel — were found to have possession of marijuana.

“The goal of these operations is not necessarily to get crack down on prostitution but to get to the people responsible for human trafficking but for forcing and coercing people into a life of prostitution,” Pittsburgh Public Safety Spokesman Chris Togneri said in a statement.

Though it has not been officially disclosed, one of the women charged for promoting prostitution was transporting her own niece to the hotel, according to local reports.

The sting comes after four people pleaded guilty in mid-December for human trafficking and prostitution operations at massage parlors in nearby Allegheny and Westmoreland counties.