(Top Row, Left to Right): Nicholas B. Steele, 44, of Marengo; Victor Andrala, 43, of Park City; Traian Big, 49, of Chicago; and Steven D. Carr, 71, of Lake Forest. (Middle Row, Left to Right): Israel G. Cisneros-Sanchez, 31, of Round Lake; Douglas M. Dockery, 36, of Arlington Heights; Christian Felix, 19, of Waukegan; and Nicholas A. Huemann, 22, of McHenry. (Bottom Row, Left to Right): Aliaksandr Kors, 33, of Lincolnshire; Theodore E. Pfaff, 39, of Crystal Lake; Ryan A. Juga, 42, of Kenosha, Wisconsin, and Michael P. Marciano, 43, of Round Lake.

The sheriff’s office announced they have arrested 12 men, who are mostly from Lake and McHenry counties, as part of a human trafficking suppression operation in Lake County.

The Lake County Sheriffโ€™s Office Special Investigations Group (SIG) conducted the operation to target customers of prostitutes, known as “Johns.”

Lake County Sheriff’s Office Deputy Chief Christopher Covelli said many individuals selling sex are not doing so willingly.

“A large number are being forced into involuntary servitude,” Covelli said.

The SIG operation was web-based and used classified advertising websites, which are regularly used as a medium for prostitution.

The “Johns” were arrested after they arrived and offered money to the undercover detectives for sexual acts, Covelli said.

Covelli said the nationwide enforcement effort over the past 10 years has led to the arrests of more than 15,000 total “Johns” and sex traffickers.

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“It is a well-known fact that many are forced into this type of โ€˜sex workโ€™ through physical force, fraud, and coercion. Many of them are victims of human trafficking,” Lake County Sheriff John Idleburg said.

“There is no doubt that if we reduce the demand for this type of activity, we reduce the need for the supply, making positive strides toward reducing human trafficking,” Idleburg said.

Those arrested from the operation were charged with solicitation of a sexual act, a Class A misdemeanor.

The suspects arrested who reside in Lake County include Israel G. Cisneros-Sanchez, 31, of Round Lake; Michael P. Marciano, 43, of Round Lake; Aliaksandr Kors, 33, of Lincolnshire; Steven D. Carr, 71, of Lake Forest; Victor Andrala, 43, of Park City; and Christian Felix, 19, of Waukegan.

The suspects arrested who reside outside of the county includeย Douglas M. Dockery, 36, of Arlington Heights; Ryan A. Juga, 42, of Kenosha, Wisconsin; Nicholas A. Huemann, 22, of McHenry; Theodore E. Pfaff, 39, of Crystal Lake; Traian Big, 49, of Chicago; and Nicholas B. Steele, 44, of Marengo.

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All of the suspects were cited, processed at the Lake County Jail and issued a court date of December 21.