San Mateo: Parents disappointed brothel discovered across from all-boys' high school

SAN MATEO, Calif. (KTVU) - For the past three weeks, neighbors had their eyes on this 20th Avenue home in San Mateo and so did police.
Their suspicions were confirmed after an undercover investigation led to a raid Monday night, and the arrest of two San Francisco men for possession of a controlled substance and operating a home of ill fame, also known as a brothel.

"They have reported seeing consistent foot traffic mostly of male subjects seen coming and going from the house at all different hours of the night and day," said San Mateo Public Information Officer, Amanda Von-Glahn.
Money and condoms were among the items found inside.
Police say online ads soliciting sex on websites like backpage.com even used this home's address as their location.

"It's odd to know that it's a brothel coming out of a private house," said one parent.

"It’s crazy. It's weird. It's not something you would expect from around here," said parent Adrienne Herro.

Parents picking up their children from Serra High School, an all-boys Catholic school, were stunned but relieved to learn that their kids weren't in any danger.

The principal sent an email to parents Tuesday advising them of the situation.

"I feel really sorry for the women who were a part of it and maybe they were in a bad situation where they couldn't get out," said Herro.

Police do suspect ties to human trafficking and are hoping to track down the young women involved.

"No prostitutes were there at the time of the search warrant, but we are urging those people to contact us because we're taking that victim side approach, we want to provide them with those resources to help them get out of this type of business," said Von-Glahn.