Asia Noel and Jiayang Yang
Ventura County – Prostitution in the 21st Century is no longer considered a “victimless” crime, but is in fact, the economic driver behind the proliferation of both international and domestic human trafficking.
According to the report of Ventura County Sheriff’s Department spokesman Sgt. Eric Tennessen, investigation into potential human trafficking cases has been and continues to be ongoing throughout the Thousand Oaks and Camarillo areas.
In pursuit of those engaged in human trafficking, “investigators searched the internet” to identify possible violators and their locations.
Evidence of the value of this work, conducted by detectives from the VCSD and the Ventura County District Attorney’s Office, surfaced on February 24th with the arrests of Asia Noel, a 25-year-old from Sacramento, Katherine Cullen, 35, from Las Vegas, transient Jiayang Yang, 44, and Sara Cox, a 31-year-old from Oxnard.
All four women had been the subject of interest by the Moorpark Police Department Special Enforcement Unit, the VCSD Special Crimes Unit, and Camarillo Police Special Enforcement Detail, and the Thousand Oaks Special Enforcement Unit.
Investigators learned that the four suspects were “operating out of various motels,” whereupon search warrants were obtained and served upon their persons and their rented accommodations.
“Evidence of conspiracy to commit prostitution” was found at four separate motels in Camarillo and Thousand oaks, and in spite of the fact that “the arrested subjects appeared to be working independently from one another,” they were each transported to Ventura County Jail for booking on charges of prostitution and conspiracy to commit prostitution.
Photos: Courtesy Ventura County Jail Booking
