Hotels in Brooklyn, Queens raided in prostitution bust; 3 arrested

FLUSHING (WABC) -- Police on Thursday raided two New York City hotels that investigators say were fronts for prostitution.

The raids took place at the New Farrington Hotel in Flushing, Queens, and the Sunny 39 Hotel in Sunset Park, Brooklyn.

At least three hotel workers were taken into custody at the two locations. They are believed to have facilitated prostitution and funneled clients to the prostitutes.

Charges are pending, and the suspects will be prosecuted by the Brooklyn District Attorney's Office.

Authorities say the prostitutes themselves are believed to be victims of human trafficking and that a major concern among law enforcement officials is finding trafficking victims, who tend to fly below the radar.

The locations are also said to be a quality-of-life concern for the NYPD, which has been aware of alleged prostitution at the locations.

"Today's arrests are one piece of a focused, comprehensive effort by my office and our law enforcement partners to seek out human trafficking in New York, a deplorable form of modern-day slavery," Attorney General Eric Schneiderman said. "We will use every law enforcement tool at our disposal to identify and shut down hotels and other businesses that illegally profit from the trafficking of men, women, and children. Together with the expertise of District Attorney Thompson and the New York State Interagency Task Force on Human Trafficking, I'm confident that we can accomplish our shared goal of ending human trafficking in our state."

This investigation comprised numerous agencies, including Homeland Security, the FBI, the NYPD, the state attorney general, the Brooklyn district attorney and the New York State Interagency Task Force on Human Trafficking.