NYPD to deal with spike in prostitution during FIFA World Cup in New York, New Jersey ‘in full’
The NYPD will crack down on prostitution “in full force” during the World Cup, officials told The Post this week.
“Part of the plan will be going to areas where prostitution is rampant, such as Penn Station and the Port Authority Bus Terminal, as well as hotels in Times Square,” said Inspector Gary Marcus, chief of the NYPD’s Special Victims Unit.
Marcus was among the NYPD officials who sat down with The Post on Friday, the day after the first game of the 104-game North American championship, including eight at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey, until the final on July 19.
NYPD teams plan and carefully monitor hot spots for commercial sex, such as Penn Track in East New York, Brooklyn, and Roosevelt Avenue in Corona and Jackson Heights, Queens.
“The expectation is that in big events, be it sports events or any other really, that there is a demand, so sex traffickers tend to exploit those opportunities and try to increase availability,” said Marcus.
The NYPD has been working with people who may come into contact with trafficking, such as workers in the tourism industry and hospitals.
“It doesn’t look like what you’d expect to see in the movies,” Marcus said. “Therefore, we prepare them for what those indicators might be, and what you should do if you meet a potential victim.”
Victims of human trafficking may include people “who are not properly dressed for the weather, or who have untreated injuries, or who look to someone else when they have to answer basic questions,” he said.
Kathleen Baer, assistant commissioner of the NYPD for Gender-Based Violence Policy and Planning, works with aid organizations in the city to ensure that there is help for anyone who is trafficked – and with local prosecutors to build a case against the criminals involved, she said.
“We’ve seen throughout history and it’s no different with FIFA, when you have a lot of people, the demand goes up,” said Baer, who led anti-trafficking efforts when he was a prosecutor in the Brooklyn District Attorney’s Office.
“We will be going out in full force to carry out these activities and make sure that we get support from our lawyers and our district attorneys where the cases arise.”
Victims of human trafficking “run the game,” he said.
“So we have girls from her hometown in Brooklyn,” she said.
“We see people being brought here from South America, and they end up being trafficked,” he continued. “Their papers were taken from them, they have no money, they have no way of life.”
The cases are difficult because the victims are afraid of their bosses or don’t want to get them into trouble.
To make matters worse, women are often reluctant to talk to the police, she said.
“So, when we go and try to rescue one of these people, they tend not to trust law enforcement,” he said.
He recalled the cases of trafficking of 11-year-old girls and stressed the need for tips from the public.
“But we have to get tips and be able to see it,” he said.
“That one phone call can save a life,” Marcus added.
Tips can be called to the NYPD’s human trafficking hotline at 646-610-7272 or NYPD Crime Stoppers anonymously at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477) or 1-888-57-PISTA (74782) in Spanish.
