PROSTITUTION CRACKDOWN NETS 38 PEOPLE

Police arrested 38 people over a four-week period in a crackdown on
prostitution in Maple Ridge's downtown core.

RCMP said in a news release Wednesday that 23 women and 15 men were
arrested for communicating for the purpose of prostitution, in an
operation targeting an area south of the Lougheed Highway, between
222nd and 225th streets.

"This is the third or fourth time Ridge Meadows RCMP has tackled this
problem in the last two years," Supt. Dave Walsh said in a written
statement.

"The majority of these women have drug addictions, and are not able to
hold a job and earn money. We need to intervene, and offer alternative
choices, to help these people make better decisions. In every case, we
offered the women counselling services through Alouette Addictions, in
an effort to start a change in these choices the women make."

Walsh said the men arrested were referred to the John Howard Society,
which runs a "John" school that "shows the men how prostitution
encourages the women to continue this lifestyle."