Othello Police Tackle Sex Trafficking With Recent Sting Operation

Police arrested seven men during a sex trafficking sting last Wednesday.

Details of the Othello Sting Operation

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According to the Othello Police Department, the men were arrested after attempting to pay for sexual acts. Authorities also contacted three women involved in commercial sex activity. The women ranged in age between 34 and 43 years old and traveled from Kennewick and Pasco. All three women were detained, interviewed, and referred to Mirror Ministries for aid and resources.

Investigators developed leads on a potential human sex trafficker, a potential drug trafficker, and obtained information about a recent robbery.

Arrests Made During the Investigation

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Police arrested the following men:

• Eduardo Ortega-Cruz (35) of Royal City
• Andriy G. Opalko (36) of Moses Lake
• Stephen E. Eilers (49) of Royal City
• Roberto Martinez-Gonzalez (32) of Ephrata
• Leandro Daniel Carillo (42) of Moses Lake
• John Douglas Peterson (58) of Kennewick
• Denis Y. Kutsiy (44) of Pasco

Support Services for Those Contacted

Police say that, although ten people were contacted during the operation, the Othello Police Department observed positive signs that the operation was successful in deterring people from engaging in commercial sex crimes, citing multiple potential sex buyers and commercial sex workers openly sharing they were not going to risk engaging in illegal activity in Othello.

Officials ask anyone with information on human trafficking to call the National Human Trafficking Hotline at 1-888-373-7888 or text "INFO" to 233733.