(First Row, Left to Right): Hakeem A. Moore, 22, of Great Lakes; Deybys Matute Moncada, 31, of Zion; Jonathan R. Litson, 45, of Gurnee; Jamir D. Holmes, 20, of Zion; John Garcia, 53, of Kenosha, WI; and Tyree R.L. Alexander, 32, of Gurnee
(Second Row, Left to Right): Alexis M. Lopez, 31, of Park City; Charles A. Lintner, 35, of Johnsburg; Andre L. Harevey, 41, of North Chicago; Daniel Corona, 29, of Pleasant Prairie, WI; Jesus M. Valdez, 28, of Zion; and Adrion E. Reynolds, 21, of Park City
(Third Row, Left to Right): James A. Kavinsky, 30, of Niles; Ryan P. Gibbs, 26, of Libertyville; Abelardo A. Velasquez, 30, of Beach Park; Ubaldo L. Sanchez, 28, of Waukegan; Adam S.W. Porwit, 26, of Twin Lakes, WI; and Argyll Piansay, 61, of Gurnee (farthest bottom right)
(Fourth Row, Left to Right): Daevieon Garland, 21, of Waukegan; Carl R. Weber, 35, of Muskego, WI; Robert L. Rowels, 39, of Ingleside; Joshua L. Powell, 34, of Libertyville; and Jesus Navarrete-Vega, 30, of Gurnee (second from bottom right)
(Fifth Row, Left to Right): Essodong Tchakpala, 25, of Round Lake Beach; Mathew Reynolds, 23, of Pleasant Prairie, WI; Eryk P. Plawinski, 26, of Algonquin; and Jesus S. Munoz, 35, of Woodstock

The sheriff’s office announced they have arrested 27 men, who are mostly from Lake and McHenry counties, as part of a human trafficking suppression operation in Lake County.

The Lake County Sheriff’s Office Special Investigations Group (SIG) conducted the two-day operation this week.

Lake County Sheriff’s Office Deputy Chief Christopher Covelli said the sting was part of continued efforts to combat human trafficking focused on reducing the demand for purchased sex.

The operation specifically targeted those attempting to purchase sex through online classified advertisements, a tactic regularly used by traffickers to market victims of human trafficking, Covelli said.

Undercover detectives posed as individuals offering sex for money.

The offenders arrived at the Gurnee-area hotel and offered money for sexual acts, at which time they were arrested and transported to the Lake County Jail.

“While some may perceive prostitution as a consensual transaction between adults, experience and investigative work have consistently shown that many individuals being sold for sex are not participating willingly,” Covelli said.

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Traffickers often force victims into prostitution through physical violence, manipulation, fraud or coercion.

“Many of these victims are vulnerable and live in fear of the repercussions they’ll face if they do not comply, often being forced to surrender any money they receive to their trafficker,” Covelli said.

Lake County Sheriff John D. Idleburg said the operations are about protecting victims and holding sex buyers accountable.

“Suppressing the demand is a critical piece of dismantling the human trafficking pipeline. If there is no buyer, there is no market,” Idleburg said.

18 of the 27 suspects arrested were from Lake County. They were identified as: Abelardo A. Velasquez, 30, of Beach Park; Robert L. Rowels, 39, of Ingleside; Jamir D. Holmes, 20, of Zion; Hakeem A. Moore, 22, of Great Lakes; Jesus Navarrete-Vega, 30, of Gurnee; Jesus M. Valdez, 28, of Zion; Tyree R.L. Alexander, 32, of Gurnee; Alexis M. Lopez, 31, of Park City; Adrion E. Reynolds, 21, of Park City; Daevieon Garland, 21, of Waukegan; Joshua L. Powell, 34, of Libertyville; Deybys Matute Moncada, 31, of Zion; Argyll Piansay, 61, of Gurnee; Andre L. Harevey, 41, of North Chicago; Ryan P. Gibbs, 26, of Libertyville; Ubaldo L. Sanchez, 28, of Waukegan; Jonathan R. Litson, 45, of Gurnee; and Essodong Tchakpala, 25, of Round Lake Beach.

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9 of the 27 suspects arrested were from outside of Lake County. They were identified as: James A. Kavinsky, 30, of Niles; Mathew Reynolds, 23, of Pleasant Prairie, WI; Eryk P. Plawinski, 26, of Algonquin; Jesus S. Munoz, 35, of Woodstock; Daniel Corona, 29, of Pleasant Prairie, WI; Charles A. Lintner, 35, of Johnsburg; Adam S.W. Porwit, 26, of Twin Lakes, WI; Carl R. Weber, 35, of Muskego, WI; and John Garcia, 53, of Kenosha, WI.

Two of the suspects resisted arrest during the operation. Matute Moncada kneed a detective in the face, causing injury, and Navarrete-Vega caused damage to a hotel hallway.

All of the suspects were charged with one count of soliciting a sexual act. Navarrete-Vega faces additional charges of resisting a peace officer and criminal damage to property; Matute Moncada faces additional charges of aggravated battery to a peace officer and resisting a peace officer causing injury; and Piansay faces additional charges of attempted possession of cocaine.

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The suspects have since been released from the Lake County Jail with future court dates.

The Lake County Sheriff’s Office was assisted by the Gurnee Police Department and the Naval Criminal Investigative Service (NCIS) during the operation.