February 21, 2008

With classified listings in over 450 cities around the world you can find almost anything with a few clicks on the website Craigslist. You may be surprised at how many listings they actually have, but even more surprising is what some of the listings offer, even right here in Charlottesville.

Under erotic services ads are constantly updated with pictures and messages from women and men, many of whom don't say exactly what they're offering but do say, you can contact them for a good time, some even posting prices per hour or half hour. They can be reached by email or by phone.

Alecia: hello

Mark: Hello can I speak to --------- please?

Alecia: Speaking

Mark: Hey I saw your ad on Craigslist.

Alecia: Are you law enforcement?

Mark: No I am not law enforcement.

Alecia: 150 an hour, a 100 for thirty minutes.

Mark: What exactly do you get?

Alecia: Typically we're talking in French, and we're talking Greek

Mark: What do you mean by French and Greek?

Alecia: French is a **** *** Greek is **** and anything between that is just regular...sex.

Alecia, whose name we've changed and whose voice we've disguised in order to protect her identity, is just one of several women we contacted on Craigslist, offering what they call French, Greek, or full service.

Mark: I called you a couple days ago.

Alecia: Yeah

Mark: I'm actually a reporter

All requests we made for an on camera interview were rejected, only Alecia agreed to do an interview but just over the phone.

Mark: How long have you been doing this?

Alecia: Roughly about 7 months.

Mark: How did you get started?

Alecia: A friend told me.

Mark: Did you think about personal safety?

Alecia: I didn't think about the negative aspect of it.

Mark: Do you think it's wrong?

Alecia: It's definitely wrong. I don't know. It's not so much that I don't think people should or should not do it but I just think females do it.

Mark: Do you have any kids?

Alecia: uh huh.

Mark: What do you tell them when you're leaving the house?

Alecia: I'm going to work. I do what I do right now so that they won't have to.

I asked Alecia if she's had any negative experiences she tells me that she was once robbed at gunpoint but even that was not enough to get her to stop. She says the money and the excitement are too addicting.

Craigslist does ban illegal activity in their terms of use. After contacting them they say they do everything they can to prevent anything illegal on their website but it's impossible to review each of the more than 30 million free postings submitted each month.

We contacted Albemarle County and Charlottesville Police to get their reaction. Albemarle County Police say they were unaware of the website and would look in to it. Charlottesville Police said they would get back to us.

As for Alecia, she says don't feel sorry or angry with her, it's her choice.

ALECIA: I hate to disappoint the people but, there's a lot of smart educated women that is not on drugs, really could go out and get a regular job or go back to school, they choose to do it.

I don't think the focus should be on us too much as it is the men. They're the ones really addicted to it and they're your husbands.