Aug
6
Vigilante Citizen Journalism!
August 6, 2008 |
Sick of prostitutes and their customers infesting their communities, Oklahomans are videobusting them and posting the results on YouTube. This one catches a Lowe’s delivery driver picking up a hooker in a residential neighborhood and retiring to the back of his truck for a playdate. It’s the work of a one man citizen journalism campaign by Brian Bates, who’s been at it in OK since 1996. It seems in the 12 year he’s been at it, he hasn’t run out of material.
Via Consumerist
Hold up….The Smoking Gun has this to say of the Video Vigilante:
Prostitution Vigilante Hooked For Pimping
An Oklahoma man who has gained national exposure for his “video vigilante” campaign to expose street prostitution in his hometown was arrested yesterday for allegedly paying hookers to ensure that they serviced customers in an area where he could easily film the illicit trysts. According to the below Oklahoma City Police Department report, Brian Bates, 34, orchestrated the public encounters so he could peddle the resulting videotape to media outlets (some of Bates’s surveillance tapes are offered for sale on his web site). In his dealings with prostitutes, Bates was choosy, investigators contend. For example, if a john was a “regular,” Bates asked prostitutes to give “specific signals” so he would know not to bother rolling tape. Investigators also noted that, like any good auteur, Bates “gave direction to the prostitutes on how to complete the act with a high probability of success,” as well as tips on how to spot an undercover cop. Bates was hit with a felony pandering charge and a misdemeanor count of aiding in prostitution. The pandering rap, which is usually reserved for pimps, carries a minimum two-year jail term, and a maximum of 20 years in the stir. In a statement posted this morning on his web site, Bates called his bust a “shock to me and my family,” adding–rather hopefully, we think–”I hope this will all be worked out in the coming days or weeks.
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