Prostitution sting nets 2 arrests

Seattle police say that Westlake Center and other popular teen hangouts are being targeted by men who coerce girls to work as prostitutes.

On Tuesday, Lester Payton, 21, and Roosevelt Johnson Jr., 24, were charged in King County Superior Court with attempted promoting commercial sexual abuse of a minor after they were arrested last week during an undercover sting.

Seattle police conducted the sting Thursday at Third Avenue and Pine Street, near Westlake Center. Two female officers posing as teenage girls were soon approached and promised to be taken care of if they got on a bus to North Seattle, worked as prostitutes and turned over all of their earnings to Payton and Johnson, according to King County Superior Court paperwork.

Seattle police Sgt. Sean Whitcomb said that juvenile prostitution is "a real concern for our department" and has become a focus of vice officers.

"We would like parents to know through these cases that there are some very real dangers that might be facing their teen daughters," Whitcomb said.

Police and charging papers say that Payton and Johnson are members of the West Side Street Mobb, a street gang that has gained a reputation for promoting prostitution. Officers said that men who are not in gangs also are soliciting girls.

Mycah Johnson, 19, another West Side Street Mobb member, was sentenced last week to 21 months in prison for forcing girls into prostitution. He said in plea-agreement paperwork that gang members sell drugs and guns, commit bank fraud and force young girls into prostitution to bolster their image among other gangs.

As part of the plea agreement, he agreed to testify against five other gang members also charged with prostitution-related crimes.

Police said that Mycah Johnson did not tip them to Payton and Johnson, charging papers said. Vice officers instead decided to carry out a sting operation near the downtown shopping area in response to recent complaints about prostitution, charging papers said.

Officers said that Payton and Roosevelt Johnson were known to hang around in the area, court papers said. Detective Todd Novisedlak said that the area has long been a popular spot among pimps, charging papers said.

The female officers said that Payton and Roosevelt Johnson instructed them to charge up to $180 for sex. Payton told them not to call them until they made at least $200, charging papers said.

"You wanna be rolling around in a Bentley or a Caddy?" Roosevelt Johnson said to one undercover officer, according to charging documents. "You bring the cash back to me and I give you whatever you need."

Jennifer Sullivan: 206-464-8294 or jensullivan@seattletimes.com