Faith-based pimpin' ain't easy

Police say the former director of Ohio's Office of Faith-Based and Community Initiatives was the "guru" of prostitution in his city.

Published January 14, 2009 10:15PM (EST)

How's this for irony: Eric McFadden, a former aide to Ohio Gov. Ted Strickland, was arrested Wednesday. According to the Columbus Dispatch, he's charged with "seven prostitution-related counts" including "promoting prostitution, pandering obscenities involving a minor and compelling prostitution."

Where's the irony in that, you ask? Until fall 2007, McFadden worked for Strickland as director of the state's Office of Faith-Based and Community Initiatives.

Columbus police are calling him the "guru" of prostitution in the city, saying he's been involved in it for six years. According to the Dispatch, he was allegedly part of a ring operated on the Web that ran a raffle for sex and led to the creation of a brothel. Police also say he posted positive reviews of a 17-year-old prostitute.

(Hat-tip to Jonah Goldberg.)


By Alex Koppelman

Alex Koppelman is a staff writer for Salon.

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