LOS ANGELES – Police say 81 women and seven men have been arrested in a raid on a downtown Los Angeles "hostess club."
Patrons at LA's hostess clubs can legally pay women for time and companionship but nudity and stripping are not allowed.
Lt. Paul Vernon said Monday that the 88 were arrested at Club 907 on Friday on suspicion of prostitution, lewd conduct, gambling and the use of counterfeit identification.
He says some of those arrested may have been illegal immigrant women trafficked into the U.S. and then forced to work at the club.
Nearly three dozen officers took part in the raid and found evidence of prostitution and about 400 people crowded into a space with a capacity for 250.
The clubs are regulated by the Los Angeles Police Commission.
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