Oakland Pastor Is Among 68 Arrested During Prostitution Sting, Police Say
A local pastor was among 68 people arrested during a prostitution sting by police, authorities said.
The Rev. Craig Ward, 40, of Brookins African Methodist Episcopal Church, flagged over a female undercover officer to his church-issued BMW just after 10:30 p.m. Thursday and tried negotiating a $20 oral sex act, police said.
“It was blatant,” said Officer Mark Turpin of the Oakland police vice squad. “He wasn’t there trying to save anybody.”
It was Ward’s third arrest for allegedly soliciting a prostitute. He was convicted of the crime in 2002 and again last year in Oakland, police said.
Ward also served four years in prison for a 1997 burglary and returned later for carrying a weapon in his car, police said.
Church leaders could not be reached for comment.
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