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The Utah Attorney General's SECURE Strike Force completed a 10-month investigation into sex trafficking on Tuesday by executing search warrants on businesses, residences and cars in Salt Lake, Davis and Weber counties.
All of the 11 businesses served with warrants were massage parlors, said Missy Larsen, a spokeswoman for the office. No specific business names or addresses were released Tuesday.
It wasn't immediately clear whether the businesses were connected or operating independently.
However, Larsen said: "We believe there is a network here."
The warrant execution, which included three homes and four automobiles, began at about 8:30 a.m., and continued throughout the day, she said.
More than a dozen women and one man were being questioned in connection with allegations of sex trafficking, Larsen said.
At some locations, clients of the businesses were on hand when the warrants were served, Larsen said. She could not say whether any of those individuals had been detained for questioning by police or had been arrested on suspicion of soliciting sex.
The investigation began as a result of information from an Ogden Police Department agent assigned to the SECURE Strike Force. It was conducted in partnership with the Utah Department of Public Safety, along with federal, county and city law enforcement agencies, Larsen said.