Sexual healing: US 'Goddess Temple' devotees held

Officers went undercover and are working to track down another 17 suspects, said Phoenix Police Sergeant Steve Martos, with more arrests expected soon.

The probe into the Goddess Temple lasted six months, culminating in raids on September 7 in Phoenix and in the northern Arizona city of Sedona, a tourist haven.

Detectives gathered evidence proving male and female "practitioners" were performing sexual acts in exchange for monetary "donations" under the guise of offering religious services, said Maricopa County Attorney Bill Montgomery, whose office will lead the prosecution.

Among those arrested was Goddess Temple Founder Tracy Elise, who was the target of a similar investigation involving a suspected brothel in Seattle, Washington state, which was shut down in 2009.

Elise faces charges of prostitution, illegal control of an enterprise, pandering and operating a house of prostitution. Others named in an indictment face counts of conspiracy, prostitution and offering massage without a license.