Four individuals were arrested and charged with human trafficking for allegedly running a prostitution ring out of a motel located in South Hackensack, New Jersey.

According to authorities, the suspects engaged in human trafficking of underage females who were forced to perform sexual acts at the motel in exchange for money.

Once authorities became aware of the alleged prostitution operation, the Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office Special Victims Unit and the South Hackensack Police Department opened an investigation into the suspects. Detectives conducted surveillance at the motel and investigators talked to young girls who reportedly told them that the suspects transported the girls, and others, to the South Hackensack motel “for the purposes of engaging in prostitution.” Police eventually obtained arrest warrants and placed the four suspects under arrest.

The suspects include a 22-year-old Central Islip NY man, an 18-year-old Bay Shore NY male, a 19-year-old West Babylon NY woman, and a 23-year-old Paterson NJ female.

All four suspects face numerous sex crime charges, including human trafficking, facilitation of human trafficking, promoting prostitution of a juvenile, and endangering the welfare of a child.

The suspects were apprehended in NY, so they are currently being held at the Suffolk County Jail. They will soon be extradited back to Bergen County in New Jersey.

For additional information about this case, view the NJ.com article, “These 4 Forced Underage Girls into Prostitution, Prosecutors Allege.”