Man and Woman Busted in Sex Trafficking Ring

January 15, 2013

For any young girl,  the promise of being provided for and taken care of in a serious relationship can seem like a dream come true. This can be especially true for girls who may be dealing with difficult family circumstances, girls who may be having trouble in school, or for girls who may feel unwanted and unloved. This was the case for one young 17 year old homeless girl who was coerced into sex trafficking by a 27 year old man who promised her money and a serious relationship.

However, what this young girl did not know was that this 27 year old man was actually a violent trafficker who used these “promises” as a means to coerce his young victims into sex trafficking. For two years, this man used violence and all means of coercion to force and seduce girls between the ages of 17 and 21 into his sex trafficking ring. Once the girls had been coerced, he would use both physical and psychological abuse on his victims. He would threaten to kill their families if they did not cooperate with his demands and often threatened to beat girls who resisted. He would also go as far as requiring “his girls” to tattoo his name on their bodies as a symbol of branding and possession.

Six men arrested in San Antonio for trafficking 12 year old Girl

March 6, 2012 

One of the most important things we can do to put an end to trafficking is to understand how choices made by youth sometimes put them directly in the hands of predators seeking to traffick them. One of the top three choices that puts a young person at risk of trafficking is to become a runaway. The other key pathways are truancy and social networking. As many as 2.8 million youth runaway each year. Within 48 hours of hitting the streets, one-third of these children are lured or recruited into the underground world of prostitution and pornography. Most young runaways have no ability to feed, clothe or shelter themselves as a homeless runaway. Predators seeking to traffick know all too well how to use this to their advantage. Most often, predators are disguised as nice, helpful or friendly persons to a young person in need of a hot meal, bed to sleep in, or money to survive. They are quite skillful at knowing just what to say to eliminate any suspicion or fear from their victims. Sadly, most victims willingly and naively go with their trafficker before they realize they are trapped.

Pimps in America: A Look at the Men Behind Domestic Minor Sex Trafficking

June 28, 2011

How exactly do young American girls get involved in domestic minor sex trafficking? Also, why are they considered victims if this is the lifestyle they are choosing?

These are common questions being asked among American public today as news of domestic minor sex trafficking in our country is exposed. We hear of foreign victims that were brought to [...]

Two 14 year old Girls Manipulated and Forced into Trafficking

June 7, 2011
New Haven, CT - 12-14 year old American girls are at highest risk for being trafficked in the United States. Traffickers prey on these young, innocent girls and manipulate them into child sex slavery. It might take weeks or even months for a trafficker to get through to their victim. They will hang around young girls and promise them the safety, support and love they are looking for.

This is what happened in New Haven, CT when two 14 year old girls ran away from a state shelter. A 30 year old man and his female accomplice [...]

Houston Criminal Justice Student Finds Salvation After Her Own Trafficking Nightmare

April 12, 2011

Houston, TX - Imagine being ripped away from your family at the age of 3 and sold into the slavery by traffickers. Breanna Bryant, a Criminal Justice student at Sam Houston State University has shared her story on their local campus newspaper.

After she was kidnapped at the age of 3, she endured several years of being trafficked.

"The next two and a half years of my life were horrific," said the student, now a junior Criminal Justice major as Sam Houston State University. "I was taken 17,000 miles away from my home and lived among a few other girls. But this group home was much different than any other I had been to. We were conditioned to do what we were told, to satisfy the gruesome desires of men. My identity, value and innocence were stolen from me."

She was "adopted" in the by a family in a black market adoption agency where she stayed for several more years. Her grandfather had hired a private detective, and finally after 3 years of searching, information was leaked and she was brought back home.

She says this after she was brought back home. "I was a mess. After so many years of being raised in corruption, how could I begin to learn any different?" Bryant said. "I had to be taught what was appropriate behavior for a child. I suffered severally from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder and fear had its grip on me. I was afraid of the night, anyone getting close to my face, and especially having the feeling of being suffocated. None of these things go away over-night and still the consequences of these events live with me.

Bryant is now working towards her degree in criminal justice, where she eventually wants to work on after-care for victims of trafficking.

Read the Full Story Here