A statewide human-trafficking operation has resulted in the arrest of 132 people, including eight men from the Valley, who sought to buy sex according to Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost.

Led by AG Yost’s Ohio Organized Crime Investigations Commission (OOCIC), Operation END-OHHT took place from Oct. 6 through Oct. 12 in 19 counties, including the Mahoning Valley.

The eight Mahoning County men arrested were:

  • Forrest Couch Sr., 49, Warren Ohio
  • Craig Forest, 61, Youngstown
  • Scott Gorby, 31, New Middletown,
  • Eric Knoch, 57, Newton Falls
  • Derek Magee, 32, Grove City, PA
  • David Miscimarra, 62, Boardman, OH
  • Scott Pelton, 27, Cortland, OH
  • Nicholas Poore, 31, Youngstown, OH

In addition, the Mahoning Valley Human Trafficking Task Force charged Raymond Masters, 55, of Chester, West Virginia, with engaging in prostitution and possession of criminal tools. Masters is a registered sex offender.

Those arrested included 110 “johns,” who face charges of engaging in prostitution or solicitation, as well as 22 individuals charged with felonies for seeking commercial sex with a minor and/or possessing narcotics.

The suspects have diverse backgrounds – from laborers and government employees to students and business owners – and range in age from 21 to 71.

Throughout the operation, authorities also identified 74 human-trafficking survivors, referring them to health-care and social-service organizations.

The collaborative effort, named after Ohio’s new human trafficking hotline, was led by OOCIC’s eight human trafficking and major crime task forces, with a dozen other local law enforcement agencies also participating.

In addition, the OOCIC task forces furthered several long-term investigations by raiding nine locations that had been linked to human trafficking, including several massage parlors and a motel. They seized more $20,000 and other related evidence. 

Local participating agencies included the Mahoning Valley Human Trafficking Task Force: Mahoning County Sheriff’s Office, BCI, Ohio Investigative Unit, Youngstown Police, East Palestine Police Department, Austintown Township Police Department, Salem Police Department, Warren Police Department, Ohio Adult Parole Authority, Columbiana County Sheriff’s Office, Compass Rape Crisis and Counseling Center, Beaver Township Police Department