BENTONVILLE — A Bentonville police investigation Wednesday resulted in the arrests of four men in connection with solicitation and a woman in connection with prostitution.
Bentonville Police Chief Jon Simpson said his department tries to routinely check online classifieds to limit the sale of sexual services.
“We know we can’t stop that kind of activity, but we can discourage it quite a lot,” Simpson said.
Prostitution and sexual solicitation bring both health and safety concerns, Simpson said. Police have noticed a potential for drug-related cases and violent crimes associated with sexual solicitation and prostitution, he said.
Whenever people respond to an online posting, they should use caution, Simpson said, noting fraud is always a possibility.
“These people could have walked into a robbery situation,” Simpson said. “In this case, it was the police.”
During the investigation, police arrested Jeremy Vincent McMillon, 34, of 400 Old Forge Drive, Bentonville, in connection with two counts of possession with intent to deliver a counterfeit substance in addition to misdemeanor loitering and sexual solicitation charges. No bond was set Thursday.