These pop-up “sting operations” in cities hosting Super Bowl have been a regular occurrence for many years now.  

A news headline from last February reads: “ Sex trafficking crackdown yielded nearly 350 arrests ahead of Super Bowl”.  According to the information provided at least 300 of those arrests were misdemeanor offenses so we aren’t talking about catching big fish or shutting down major trafficking rings.  

There are myths that continue to be propagated claiming that Super Bowl is the largest human trafficking event that exists, that sex trafficking volume is at an extremely high level around the event etc. There is actually no definitive proof of these myths.  It’s not so much that there is a drastic rise in paid sex, but rather there is a drastic rise in policing this activity which makes it appear as though the numbers are extremely inflated. There have even been claims of ongoing investigations where the arrests were postponed until the timing of the planned sting to make those arrest numbers look higher.  

In many areas the fact that a large sporting event of this scale brings in so many visitors, typically a higher ratio of males, will certainly contribute to increased business for the local ladies, and may also encourage touring providers to visit.  A city like Las Vegas would likely notice this effect least of all as visitors are a way of life here - volume already rises with many large conventions and other events.  

Biglou - you are 100% correct in your theory that there will be mass arrests in an effort to get numbers up and make this effort look like successful and justified. So it is very wise advice to be particularly careful during this time and do your due diligence to protect yourself.