CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — Nine men were arrested on Monday on charges of prostitution after they solicited an undercover Corpus Christi Police Department officer who was posing as a prostitute.
Police said the men solicited the officer seeking sex acts in exchange for money. The operation targeted several neighborhoods that are frequented by prostitutes.
Police said officers in the department's Narcotics and Vice Division, as well as citizens involved with the Red Cord program, were involved.
The Red Cord program is a prostitution diversion program aimed to provide practical and emotional support for those involved in prostitution.
The program is successful due to the collaboration between Coastal Bend Wellness Foundation, social service organizations, Nueces County District Attorney Office, and CCPD.
The Red Cord program affords those involved with sex work an opportunity to address the behavioral, social, and psychological problems they have faced throughout their lifetime.
The men are facing solicitation charges, a Class B misdemeanor punishable by up to six months in jail and fines of up to $2,000.
The men arrested during Monday’s operation will be required to attend a mandatory prostitution diversion education program at their expense.
This program educates men about the negative consequences of prostitution, circumstances that may lead someone to purchase sex, and the impact they have on the individual they attempt to solicit sex from in exchange for money.
The fees raised from this program are then used to provide some of the resources mentioned above, to assist women seeking to escape the bondage of prostitution.
