Regulatory Enforcement Unit

​The Regulatory Enforcement Unit (REU) was founded in 2009 to combat the increasing number of illicit 8-liner game rooms, massage parlors, and sexually oriented businesses plaguing the business districts and neighborhoods of Precinct 4. Over the recent years, the Regulatory Enforcement Unit has expanded from strictly conducting Harris County Regulatory Inspections for establishment licenses to more complex criminal investigations. The REU continues to investigate the unlicensed game rooms and massage parlors but has broadened their scope of investigation to include human trafficking investigations and prostitution related cases.  With the addition of a designated Human Trafficking Investigator, the Regulatory Enforcement Unit has been successfully able to focus on the much more complex nexus of prostitution and combat the persons who actually traffic or force the victims into prostitution.

The Regulatory Enforcement Unit is also readily available to assist any division of the department with covert surveillance and investigation in a multitude of scenarios. From drug and narcotic related cases to major crime suppression initiatives and everything in between, the Regulatory Enforcement Unit is well trained and highly capable of assisting any other division of the Department as needed.