CLEARWATER — Eleven women were arrested Wednesday on charges of soliciting prostitution or publicly exposing themselves near the East Gateway area off Cleveland Street.
The arrests were part of a sting by the Clearwater Police Department to reduce prostitution in the area. One man also was arrested in connection with the operation: Daniel Lockhart, 51, of Clearwater, who was charged with cocaine possession.
According to affidavits from undercover officers, oral sex was offered by a number of the women for $20. Others were arrested for flashing officers too much skin inside the undercover vehicles, arrest reports said.
One of the women caught in the sting, Darla R. Stephen of Clearwater, flagged down an undercover officer driving an unmarked police vehicle, and told the officer she was looking to "party," according to her arrest report.
Because sting operations can sometimes involve officers posing as prostitutes to catch "johns," Stephen tried to prove to the undercover officer she was not a cop by offering a peepshow, according to the report.
Stephen exposed her breasts, and told the officer, "I'm not a cop. Touch 'em," the report said.
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