Milford is a city of approximately 51,000 residents, located between Bridgeport and New Haven in western Connecticut. Cases of prostitution and child sex trafficking have been reported in the city, with activities often arranged online and concentrated indoors in hotels or apartments. For example, in August 2013 local law enforcement agencies participated in a three-day national operation to address child sex trafficking, and juvenile victims were found in Milford, Groton, and Waterbury, Connecticut. Police reported that complaints from local residents and businesses were numerous and persistent, and such complaints played a role in police conducting prostitution operations.

Efforts to combat prostitution and sex trafficking have included the use of tactics focused on demand. For example, the Milford Police Department has conducted at least one web-based reverse sting to identify and arrest sex buyers. In late February 2014, MPD officers, with the assistance of the Stratford Police Department, placed a decoy classified listing offering sex on a website known for prostitution activity. Individuals who responded to the advertisement were arrested after they offered money in exchange for sex with the undercover officer. Seven sex buyers were arrested as a result; in the days that followed, the MPD distributed a press release specifying the men’s names, ages, and home addresses.