Australian firm seeks brothel sex inspector

It’s billed as a bachelor’s dream job — being paid $70k annually to "partake of sexual services" at brothels in NSW on behalf of local councils. An advertisement for the job as a "Brothel Buster Investigator", placed by Lyonswood Investigations and Forensic Group in Sydney, was published in My Career in late January. Applicants are required to be unmarried and preferably single, to be willing to have protected sexual intercourse with prostitutes and to provide sworn evidence in court. Lyonswood operations manager Lachlan Jarvis said it was a completely legal service the company had provided for local councils in NSW for many years.

Councils hire the investigator to visit suspected illegal brothels and gather evidence to prove they are offering sexual services, Mr Jarvis said. "Some [jobs] require the offering of sexual services, some actually require the partaking of sexual services … because it is considered the most convincing evidence," he said. Lyonswood, which is based in the Sydney suburb of Drummoyne, conducts about 10 to 20 brothel investigations each year, and the job often puts investigators in situations most people only see in movies.



"We have a filing cabinet of cases that would blow you away," Mr Jarvis said. He recalled one incident years ago when an investigator rigged up a hidden camera in a bolo tie to film two prostitutes performing sex acts on a stage. "It was all going swimmingly, we were getting the evidence, until shortly into the performance the camera malfunctioned and smoke started coming from the string tie," he said. "We looked down and the camera had caught fire, the investigator obviously beat a hasty retreat — it gives a whole new meaning to the term hot under the collar."

Investigators often come across other illegal activity at the brothels, including sex trafficking, weapons, improper fire exits, breaches of health and safety and incorrect disposal of waste, Mr Jarvis said. Not surprisingly, Mr Jarvis said the ad proved popular with Sydney job seekers. "We have had dozens [of people] if not more than that apply, it is certainly a popular job," he said. Applicants are required to have a private investigator licence, awareness of occupational health and safety, and good command of written and spoken English.