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ALBUQUERQUE — Two aging professors accused of running a sophisticated prostitution website appeared to have one goal: Police say they wanted to create a place where respected men like themselves could go for sex without having to worry about getting caught up in street stings.

“They have a lot to lose, and they tried to build an organization to protect themselves,” said Albuquerque police Lt. William Roseman.

The website, based in the Albuquerque-Santa Fe area, featured “weather reports” about police vice stings; physical descriptions and cellphone numbers of undercover police to help members avoid arrest; training videos on what to do if members were busted; and detailed information on the prostitutes themselves, including prices and star performance rankings from other members.

Southwest Companions, with 1,400 members, was invitation- only, and new members were vetted as they worked their way through three tiers. The first level was “probation,” Roseman said, where new clients secured prostitutes through the site.

After they hooked up, the prostitute would tell a moderator what she did and how much she was paid. As the members progressed through the “verified” and “trusted” tiers, they gained access to more information about undercover officers and the hookers.

Police found no evidence that students were recruited or that the site was a university network.

David Flory, a physics professor at Fairleigh Dickinson University in New Jersey, is suspected of buying the site in 2009. The site was created by a woman named Cara Garrett. Investigators say Garrett was still involved in the ring when she tipped police to its existence in December.

Flory, 68, who lives in New Jersey but has a home in Santa Fe, told police he bought the site to create a safe place for people to buy and sell sex, calling it a hobby, Roseman said.

Flory bonded out of jail Wednesday and faces 40 charges of promoting prostitution. He did not return phone calls.

Among the site’s top echelon, police said, was former University of New Mexico president F. Chris Garcia, who allegedly recruited prostitutes.

Garcia, who has been suspended from his post as professor emeritus of political science, faces charges of promoting prostitution, conspiracy and tampering with evidence.