Cy Vance Distances Himself from Rentboy Raid

Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance Jr. had his office's name removed from the press release announcing the raid on Rentboy.com Tuesday, which was issued by the Brooklyn office of the US attorney for the Eastern district of New York. The press office for Cy Vance notified Gay City News in an email Wednesday that they had been removed from the release.

Rico Stone, a spokesperson for The Hook Up Collective, a coalition of Rentboy.com advertisers, lawyers, and community members, wrote in an email:

"Cy Vance is understandably distancing his office from the nightmarish raid on an important safety tool for people in the sex trades. Whether or not his office contributed to the raid itself, it happened under his watch."

The popular online gay male escort service was raided earlier this week resulting in the arrest of the CEO and six other employees. The website is allegedly under investigation for money laundering and prostitution. The raid has sparked outcry from advocates for sex workers' rights, and numerous organizations have signed a statement issued by Lambda Legal calling for the decriminalization of prostitution.