Seven arrested in Othello sex trafficking investigation

OTHELLO — The Othello Police Department arrested seven men for involvement in prostitution following a two-day investigation last week. Othello Police Chief Aaron Garza said combating human sex trafficking is an ongoing focus for the department. 

“We don’t believe human beings are for sale,” Garza said. “We conduct these operations quite regularly here. It’s really starting to get traction – people actually know not to come to Othello and try to buy sex.” 

The OPD has been conducting sex trafficking investigations for a few years, he said, a practice that started when OPD detectives expressed an interest in trying to fight it.  

“It’s a desire to help stop the sex trafficking demand,” Garza said.  

Eduardo Ortega-Cruz, 35, and Stephen Eilers, 49, both of Royal City; Andriy Opalko, 36, and Leandro Daniel Carillo, 42, both of Moses Lake; Roberto Martinez-Gonzalez, 32, Ephrata; John Douglas Peterson, 58, of Kennewick; and Denis Kutsiy, 44, of Pasco, were arrested on suspicion of patronizing a prostitute, according to an OPD release issued Tuesday.  

The arrests led to leads in other cases, the OPD release said.  

“Investigators developed leads on a potential human sex trafficker, identified a potential drug trafficker and obtained information pertaining to a recent robbery,” the release said. 

Most of the time the investigations result only in catching people looking to buy sex, Garza said, but sometimes people looking to sell sex also show up.  

“Sometimes we get the actual sex worker to come to our establishment,” he said. “We treat them differently, because individuals that are actively involved in sex trafficking, a lot of times they are victims themselves.” 

Three women were contacted during last week’s investigation, the OPD release said.  

“The women ranged in age from 34 to 43 years old and traveled from Kennewick and Pasco. All three women were detained, interviewed and were referred to Mirror Ministries for aid and resources,” it said. “One of the women was arrested for an outstanding warrant and transported to jail. She was not arrested for prostitution-related offenses.” 

Garza said it’s important to give people who may be looking for a way out some options.  

“They’re generally there because someone is forcing them; somebody is trafficking them. Whenever we do come across these types of people, we always try to offer them resources. We try to give them the most help we can give them,” he said. “Of course, they have to accept it, but there’s a lot of value in letting them know that there’s people out there that can help them.” 

Garza said sex trafficking investigations are complex operations and require cooperation from a lot of different agencies. 

“From beginning to end we have an operations plan, we make sure people are going to be safe, we have officers that work undercover through online chats and that solicit individuals that are looking to buy sex in Othello,” Garza said. “This is how it’s done in larger cities, where there’s a solicitation put out for sex in Othello, at a specific place, at a specific time for a specific amount.  We have officers that go undercover, we have officers that use surveillance techniques, we have arrest teams set up – it's a large production.” 

Othello PD received assistance from the Warden Police Department, the Kittitas County Sheriff’s Office, Washougal Police Department, Mirror Ministries and This Mission, Garza said.  

“This Mission is a non-profit based out of Spokane that’s directly involved in combating human sex trafficking,” he said.  

This Mission helps OPD with funding, he said, since the investigations are very expensive. 

The department also offers other options for victim services, through both Grant and Adams counties, he said.