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Dominican police question 16 from US in prostitution raid
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S
ixteen U.S. citizens were held for questioning in the Dominican Republic following a raid on a home that authorities allege was being used for prostitution near a resort town in the north of the country, police said Thursday.
The U.S. citizens were detailed along with seven Dominicans at the home in an upscale community in Agua Clara near the beach town of Sosua, local police said in a statement. There were 29 prostitutes found at the home, including some under 18, it said.
None of those detained in the Wednesday raid were identified and prosecutors declined to comment, saying the investigation was still underway.
Prostitution is not specifically prohibited under Dominican law but is not technically legal either. Anyone who makes money off the services or uses the service of a prostitute can face charges of sexual exploitation.
Attorney General Francisco Dominguez said in 2013 that the country would crack down on widespread sexual exploitation and warned that clients of prostitutes could be prosecuted. Since then, authorities have prosecuted a handful of cases involving people, including several foreigners, who owned nightclubs dedicated to prosecution but not anyone for merely using the services of a prostitute. (***)
