Operation Round-Up Leads to 125 Arrests- Including Pastor & Teacher

October 27, 2021 Criminal Defense

Early this month, the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office conducted a 20-day sting operation called Operation Round-Up, resulting in the arrest of 125 men for human trafficking charges. Undercover detectives focused their efforts on criminals who were attempting to engage in sex with minors or who were seeking to exploit them through human trafficking.

Alarmingly, a church pastor, Samuel Phillips, was arrested when he responded to a fake ad on an escort service and attempted to pay for sex. He was charged with soliciting another to commit prostitution. A Hillsborough County school teacher, Joel Velasco, was also one of the individuals arrested after offering an undercover cop $60 for sex. Velasco was also charged with soliciting another to commit prostitution. The operation ultimately rescued four women and one teenager who were being trafficked. Detectives also arrested two men for transmission of harmful material to a minor, with one receiving charges for traveling to meet a minor after using a computer device to solicit sexual acts.

The crime of soliciting another to commit prostitution is codified under Section 796.07 of the Florida Statutes. Under the statute, a first violation will result in a first-degree misdemeanor, punishable by up to one year in jail, a fine of up to $1,000, or both. A second offense will result in a third-degree felony, punishable by up to five years in prison, a fine of up to $5,000, or both. A third or subsequent offense will result in a second-degree felony, punishable by up to fifteen years in prison, a fine of up to $10,000, or both. If you would like to read more solicitation of prostitution in Florida, you can do so here. Furthermore, you can read about federal and state human trafficking legislation here.

The results of this operation are eerily similar  to Operation Takedown, a weeklong operation conducted by the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office from March 30 to April 9. This operation took place right before WrestleMania and was “the second human trafficking operation conducted by a sheriff’s office this year ahead of a large-scale event.” The undercover operations resulted in seventy-nine arrests, including Earnest Benjamin, a pastor in Tampa, and Christopher Ray, a girls basketball coach at Land O’Lakes High School. Both were also arrested for soliciting another to commit prostitution, but Benjamin received two additional charges of contributing to delinquency or dependency of a child since he had his two young children in the car when he was soliciting another to commit prostitution. In addition, three human trafficking victims were rescued from the operation. If you would like to read more about child predator sting operations in Florida, as well as penalties for child predator crimes, you can do so here.

As more trusted members of the community are revealed to be participating in such heinous criminal activities, it is imperative that you report anyone you believe may be a human trafficking victim. You can report suspected human trafficking by calling the National Human Trafficking Hotline at 1-888-373-7888.

This article was written by Sarah Kamide


Back to Top