49ers owner’s arrest puts tiny East Palestine, Ohio, in national spotlight again
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Trent Conaway works a full-time job as a logistics coordinator for a trucking company. His other job, mayor of the village of East Palestine, Ohio, is a part-time gig.
“We haven’t had this much excitement around here since the train derailed,” Conaway told USA TODAY Sports by phone Aug. 24. “It’s been a little chaotic the last couple of hours, but yeah.”
Conaway, who spoke at the 2024 Republican National Convention, was referencing two events more than three years apart. The train derailment near the small town of approximately 5,000 residents in northeast Ohio exposed the area to toxic chemicals during a lengthy cleanup process.
The “last couple of hours” was the arrest of San Francisco 49ers owner Jed York during a prostitution sting. York pleaded no contest Monday to two misdemeanor charges after his arrest in East Palestine, Ohio, on Aug. 23. York’s initial charge of “engaging in prostitution” was reduced to disorderly conduct and possessing criminal tools, according to court documents obtained by USA TODAY Sports.
East Palestine, Ohio, and its fight against human trafficking
Policing human trafficking has been a priority in the area, Conaway said. Local detective Daniel A. Haueter works with the Mahoning Valley Human Trafficking Task Force, which is led by the Mahoning County Sheriff’s Office and includes representatives from several agencies in the region, including the East Palestine Police Department.
Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost announced in May that more than 1,000 arrests had been made in human trafficking operations in the state since 2019, noting 10 arrests made by the Mahoning Valley Human Trafficking Task Force in a coordinated statewide operation that month.
From what Conaway learned this was a normal prostitution sting conducted to root out human trafficking in the area.
“It just so happens,” he said, “we got Mr. York.”
The operations have been ongoing for about a decade, Conaway said, although he could not pinpoint exactly when they began.
Asked if human trafficking is a prevalent issue in the area, Conaway said it was a statewide effort to eliminate human trafficking and again complimented Haueter.
“We’re very proud of the work that he’s done. We’ve got quite a few people off the streets,” Conaway said.
Conaway said those arrested for sex work are often directed to county- and state-level resources upon release from custody.
Catching the perpetrators seeking to pay for sex is the priority, though.
“We get people from all walks of life. It’s a shame when anybody feels a need to do this. It doesn’t matter whether they’re a NFL owner or a handyman down the street,” Conaway said. “We’re trying to curb this. It’s part of a broader scope of the human trafficking (enforcement). Human trafficking is a real problem. It’s an ever-growing problem in the United States. We’re just trying to do our best to curb that.”
Contributing: Michael Middlehurst-Schwartz