A senior defense official in the education sector for the Pentagon in the United States was allegedly caught in the act of pimping during a major police operation on human trafficking, which led to the arrest of 26 individuals.
“We are aware of an alleged incident involving a (Department of Defense Education Activities) DoDEA employee in the Americas region. Given the legal proceedings, it would be inappropriate to comment further at this time,” DoDEA said in a statement to Channel 2 Action News on Wednesday.
Stephen Hovanic, 64, was allegedly handcuffed alongside 25 other individuals during a two-day police operation last week targeting human trafficking in Georgia, Fox5 Atlanta reported.
The 60-year-old from Sharpsburg, identified as the head of the Department of Defense Schools in the United States, was accused of pimping by the Coweta County Sheriff’s Office, for allegedly soliciting sex from an undercover agent in a motel room, according to information from the American media.
However, he defended himself to the authorities by claiming that he wanted to buy a massage, and not sex, according to Fox5 Atlanta.
In total during the operation, 26 individuals were arrested on various charges, including pimping and prostitution, but the investigation continues and could lead to other arrests.
The intervention would also have made it possible to identify six victims of human trafficking, to whom help would have been offered, according to a preliminary assessment of the operation.
