'Hookers for Jesus' mission to save Las Vegas prostitutes

New York, Nov 16 (ANI): A former prostitute in the US has started a faith-based mission, called "Hookers for Jesus", which is aimed at saving Las Vegas prostitutes.

Annie Lobert, 43, from Minnesota, worked as a Las Vegas hooker for over 10 years, finally leaving the life behind after a near-fatal overdose and repeated physical abuse from violent pimps.

She started Hookers for Jesus in 2006, and eventually began working with The Church of South Las Vegas after she left the sex trade.

"When I used to get arrested and the vice [cops] called me a 'hooker', it really offended me," the New York Post quoted her as saying.

"So one day I was thinking, if I was reaching out to women and starting to go into casinos and saying, 'I can help you change your life', and calling myself Annie, it would be a weird thing - 'Annie Lobert's Reach Out'.

"So I figured Hookers for Jesus. I believe in God, for one, and I was a hooker and now I go and fish for people to save," she stated.

She got help from pastor Benny Perez in starting Destiny House, which is a shelter for ex-prostitutes, where they are helped to prepare for life in the straight world.

Lobert and her mission have become the focus of "Hookers: Saved on the Strip", a three-part series premiering December 8 on Investigation Discovery.

TV cameras follow her as she tries to teach ex-call girls how to turn their lives around. (ANI)