Residents say former police officer has turned blind eye to prostitution problem near property he owns

CLEVELAND, Ohio (WOIO) - 19 News discovered Monday that it’s a retired police officer who owns a run-down property on Lorain Avenue, and neighbors say its porch is an easily accessible place for prostitutes to wait for business.

We were first to tell you last week about why the community is at odds over the problem, and how to fix it.

Everyone in Cleveland can pull up the Detroit Shoreway Street Life page on Facebook..

Jason Hauser is posting pictures of women that he insists are prostitutes, and he’s urging someone to clean up the area they’re occupying.

“The prostitution out here is unreal,” Hauser said.

According to property tax records, a man named Cesar Herrera owns one of the decrepit buildings Hauser said the women occupy a lot of the time.

Former police union president Steve Loomis confirms Herrera was a detective on the force for several years. Loomis says Herrera was a good officer and never caused any trouble.

But now, neighbors say the man once sworn in to protect and serve is now turning a blind eye, failing to secure his property and allowing it, they say, to become a safe haven for sex workers.

“They’re doing drugs on the front porch,” Hauser said. “We can see exactly what’s going on.”

According to county records, Herrera owes more than $33,000 in back taxes on the Lorain Avenue property alone.

19 News reached out to Herrera for comment, but he did not reply Monday.

The county is looking into whether it started a foreclosure process.

As far as the property on the other side of 68th Place, we talked to its owner on the phone today.

A lot of times, women in the pictures are sitting on his stoop.

Rudy Valentino says he lives in the house next to these run-down buildings.

“I don’t know how I could be at fault for prostitution,” he said. “Prostitution will happen anywhere, in front of the nicest building. It has nothing to do with the building.”

Valentino says he’s talked to many of the women about how they got here.

“The stories they tell me, it’s sad,” he said.

Valentino says he’s cleaning up the property piece by piece, though.

He’s hoping for more patrols or even a camera at this corner to deter people from squatting there.

He says he’s been complaining to the city for years.

The councilman over the Detroit Shoreway area says he’s pushing for more resources too, but he just doesn’t agree with the way people are trying to bring attention to the matter in the meantime.

“The unfortunate part of this Facebook page is you’re continuing to victimize these women,” Cleveland City Councilman Matt Zone said.

Hauser says his page has received hundreds of new members since we uncovered this story Friday.

He hopes it’s for the right reasons.

Councilman Zone wanted to make sure anyone who needs resources knows where to find them.

The Cleveland Rape Crisis Center Project STAR has a 24/7 hotline. The number is 855-431-7827.

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