Local fire inspector, ADAMHS board member charged in statewide human trafficking operation
Oct. 16—Approximately a dozen people in the Miami Valley were among more than 100 arrested last week as part of a statewide human trafficking operation in Ohio.
In total, 132 people were arrested for crimes related to engaging in prostitution, including 22 who sought to have sex with minors and 110 "johns," or people attempting to purchase sex, according to Ohio Attorney General David Yost.
"This is important because without money there is no human trafficking," Yost said. "Without money the marketplace collapses and the incentive for human trafficking goes away."
Law enforcement officers also referred 73 human trafficking survivors to healthcare and social service organizations for support.
At least sevens johns with ties to the Miami Valley were arrested, including Charles Arnold, a chief fire inspector for the Ohio Department of Commerce, and Jeffrey Startzman, a former prosecutor and magistrate and Montgomery County Alcohol, Drug Addiction and Mental Health Services member.
They were both charged with one count of solicitation in Kettering Municipal Court.
ADAMHS released a statement Wednesday morning saying Startzman is no longer a trustee of the board.
Graham Lockett, 61, of Dayton; Thomas Lindsey, 58, of Dayton; John Vanetti, 67, of West Alexandria; Mohammed Patel, 56, of Beavercreek; and Jiraire L. Beard, 25, of Cincincinat; were charged with one count of misdemeanor solicitation in Fairborn Municipal Court.
Lockett pleaded no contest to the charge and was found guilty, according to court records. He was sentenced to up to two years of supervised community control and ordered to take a john class.
Vanetti and Beard pleaded guilty and was sentenced to two years probation and ordered to take a john class, according to court documents.
Arrested Alfonso Rodriguez, 45, of the Dominican Republic; Dennis Armando Doban, 25, of Honduras; and Kelvin Nimako, 23, of Ghana; were charged with importuning and possession of criminal tools in Fairborn Municipal Court.
No one arrested in the week-long operation is being charged with human trafficking. Yost noted human trafficking comparable to high-end criminal offenses such as racketeering or bulk weight narcotic sales.
"The stings don't produce typically those high-end arrests," he said. "What they do is produce the cases that end up producing the leads that lead to those."
The stings tend to focus on the street and the retail aspect of prostitution.
"We need to work up the food chain and rest assured we will," Yost said.
The attorney general also expressed concerns about stories he's heard of prosecutors accepting plea deals or reduce charges for those accused of paying for sex.
"I'm calling on the prosecutors in this great state to hold the line," he said. "This doesn't mean that everybody needs to get locked up or get locked up for a long time, but there has to be consequences. If we're going to stop human trafficking there have to be sanctions for the people that are funding this with their money."
He added there needs to be education as well, but there needs to be penalties to deter this behavior in the future.
Hundreds of law enforcement agencies participated in the operation, including the Montgomery County Human Trafficking Task Force. The task force is made up of the Montgomery County Sheriff's Office, Butler Twp. Police Department, Miami Twp. Police Department, Homeland Security Investigations and Oakwood Police Department.
On Sept. 30 the state announced a new human trafficking hotline to help connect law enforcement with tips from the public. The hotline, 844-END-OHHT (844-363-6448), is a non-emergency number operated 24/7 by the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation.
