Toronto police arrest alleged ringleader of international sex trafficking operation

Toronto police say the alleged ringleader of an international sex trafficking operation was arrested in Ontario and faces extradition to the United States.

Officers say they began working with the FBI last August to investigate the organization and the 46-year-old Toronto-area man who allegedly headed it up.

They allege the accused operated a criminal enterprise that recruited women – mostly from China – to travel to the U.S. and elsewhere to engage in prostitution.

Investigators say that in the cities where the organization was operating, a “boss” would oversee and manage a brothel in a hotel or apartment complex and advertise women’s sexual services online.

They say the organization employed dispatchers who would receive incoming requests from potential customers to set up “dates.” The dispatchers would schedule the “dates” with women working at the various brothels.

READ MORE: 2 men, woman face 21 charges in Toronto human trafficking investigation, police say

Toronto police say that a “multi-jurisdictional takedown operation” was conducted in Canada, the U.S. and Australia on Tuesday, and the accused was found in the Greater Toronto Area.

Zongtao Chen, who also goes by Zong Tao Chen and Mark Chen, appeared in court on Wednesday on an extradition order from the U.S. government.

Officers are asking anyone with information about the accused to come forward.