Backpage.com

Backpage.com was seized by the government in 2018.

The Justice Department has announced charges against seven individuals related to the seizure of Backpage.com.

The defendants include founders Michael Lacey and James Larkin of Paradise Valley, as well as five others.

According to an indictment unsealed Monday, they are facing charges including conspiracy to facilitate prostitution and conspiracy to commit money laundering.

The website was seized by federal agencies on Friday while agents raided Lacey’s Sedona home.

In a statement, U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions called backpage a “marketplace for illicit commercial sex.”