JACKSONVILLE, Fla – A dozen employees, including the manager at Wacko's Jacksonville were arrested Friday afternoon during a raid by the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office.
The 37-year-old manager along with 11 female employees were in handcuffs as they were escorted out of the adult entertainment club located on Emerson Street near the intersection of Spring Park Road.
Officers held up pieces of cardboard to cover the women's faces.
Several women were escorted out of Wackos in handcuffs with police covering their faces with cardboard. @wjxt4 pic.twitter.com/QpW8KJlfF5
— Corley Peel (@WJXT_CorleyPeel) September 27, 2019
One employee said she was dancing when the police showed up.
"The cops came in and put all the girls in the locker room to check and make sure that we're following the law. If the girls were not following the law, they got arrested," she said. "It was kind of scary."
For hours, police were seen walking in and out of the club. A woman said she was there to check on her roommate, who is a dancer. She said her friend was arrested.
"I came down from Georgia, and I just went up to the door, and they said, 'This is nothing of your concern right now,'" the friend said.
News4Jax has chosen not to name the women or show their photos because the charges against them are misdemeanors and they could be victims of trafficking.
Dancers who were not arrested were free to leave after the raid.