Hidden in Plain Sight

Name any crime show and you will see they all play out the same way. There’s a beginning, middle and an end. There’s a back story, an investigation and at the end of the hour, the criminal is caught and arrested. Justice is served. Roll the credits. While we all love this type of ending, our reality is that not every real-life criminal is caught and not every victim is rescued. With a crime like human trafficking, this is certainly the case, and the victim’s pain and trauma can last an entire lifetime, whether justice is served or not.

In August of this year, the FBI made national headlines after it announced it had located 200 victims of sex trafficking during a nationwide enforcement campaign known as Operation Cross Country. The identification or arrest of 126 suspects of child sexual exploitation and human trafficking offenses were made, and 68 suspects of trafficking were identified or arrested. While this is front-page newsworthy, we don’t know how many more child predators are out there or how many victims are waiting to leave, be rescued and be helped. We can focus on what we do know—human trafficking is a heinous crime that exploits the most vulnerable in society, and it’s a growing industry that needs to be stopped.

With its physical location within six hours of most of the U.S. population and with the socioeconomic challenges many here face, West Virginia is not without risk of human trafficking and child exploitation. The West Virginia Fusion Center (WVFC) has two analysts focusing on anti-human trafficking—Paula Yount, programs and law enforcement training coordinator, and Samantha Dial, human trafficking intelligence analyst. Throughout West Virginia, there have been tips and investigations pertaining to sex trafficking, child sex trafficking—including familial—and labor trafficking. The WVFC analysts say that of the reported
human trafficking tips, familial trafficking is the most common and may be a generational occurrence that has become normalized.

“The most recent case in reference to familial trafficking involved a minor, their guardian/trafficker and a law enforcement officer who paid the trafficker for sex,” Dial says.

Another case in 2023 that was brought to light involved an illicit massage parlor engaged in sex trafficking, and the victim had been smuggled across the U.S. border and brought into West Virginia.

The challenge with ending human trafficking crimes such as these is that cases are significantly underreported, making an accurate depiction of the issue nearly impossible. The common thread for human trafficking cases, however, is generally a vulnerability that leads to exploitation.

“Most people are looking for the boogeyman in the alleyway lurking,” says Angie Conn, founder, lead consultant and subject matter expert at SheWhoDares Consulting, LLC. “A trafficker is very charismatic and will take the person they are grooming and get to know them. They will use their dreams, the things that make them laugh and the things that make them cry. Using all that information, a trafficker will string together a dream—the victim’s dream—and repackage it, then sell it back to them, and most of the time, it doesn’t take too much effort to convince them to buy into it. They ask the right questions to find the access points into a person’s life, and every human being has access points.”

Socioeconomics can play a role in these vulnerabilities, and often does.

“Socioeconomic challenges for children such as homelessness or housing instability, growing up in the foster care system, lack of food, poverty, substance abuse, history of abuse or neglect, children’s dependence on others to obtain basic necessities, etc. are all considered vulnerabilities in youth-based trafficking,” Dial says. “A trafficker will exploit any vulnerability to manipulate a potential victim.”

Substance use also can be a driver for traffickers to engage in trafficking victims to support the victim’s habits. The trafficker could also cross-traffic the victim, forcing them to commit other crimes such as shoplifting, panhandling or selling drugs.

“Human trafficking is a low-risk crime for traffickers because victims are not likely to identify or self-report as a victim of human trafficking or exploitation due to factors including trauma bonding or threats made by force, fraud or coercion,” says Dial. “A trafficker may be a guardian who is exploiting their child to pay for drugs, or it may be someone who has been drugged continuously to make that person easier to manipulate/control and then exploit them for commercial sex. A trafficker may also be a part of a bigger criminal organization or gang affiliated as it is another way to make money.”

There are many misconceptions or myths related to human trafficking. One is that it doesn’t happen to people with a higher socioeconomic status. In fact, sometimes, those with a higher socioeconomic status are the perpetrators.

“People in a higher socioeconomic status like to think these crimes will not happen to them or their community,
but this is not a factor when it comes to these crimes,” FBI Special Agent Jankowski says. “No matter where you or your children are in society, you are just as vulnerable to these crimes as anyone else. From rich to poor, these crimes happen to all members of every society.”

Another misconception is that males are generally always the perpetrators and not victims. A victim, just like a trafficker, can be anyone. Traffickers have been mothers and fathers, church leaders, coaches and probation officers. Likewise, buyers can also be anyone, with many being married with families at home.

“Boys represent the fastest growing segment of identified human trafficking victims,” says U.S. Attorney William Ihlenfeld II of the Northern District of West Virginia. “This can adversely affect the screening of male victims and protection for them when they escape. Males are less likely to self-identify as victims due to a fear of being stigmatized.”

U.S. Attorney William Thompson of the Southern District of West Virginia adds another myth—that a child is not a trafficking victim if their parents gave consent.

“It’s also a myth that it’s not trafficking if the trafficker showed some instances of kindness or generosity, or if the child views their trafficker as a caregiver or has not attempted to escape,” Thompson says.

West Virginia is on par with other states as far as human trafficking in the traditional sense; however, one major issue happening in this state is online trafficking.

“A majority of the crimes against children do start online,” FBI Special Agent Baushke says. “Technology is constantly changing and forever becoming more complex, and predators online are taking advantage of that to deceive our youth into false beliefs or relationships. As technology becomes more advanced, it is becoming harder to know what is real and what isn’t, making children vulnerable. Law enforcement tries to stay ahead of the curve by taking advanced technological training and staying up to date on current technology to combat this.”

Traffickers often use social media and video game platforms to target victims. Developments in artificial intelligence allow individuals to make themselves appear younger, older or even a different gender so they can deceive and use manipulation to build a relationship with their target. Prevention resources such as “The Cool Aunt” series created by The Foundation United can be helpful for teenagers aged 12 and up. It’s an online 1.5 hour, self-paced, engaging video course that discusses the streams of influences that can make people vulnerable, including media.

Thompson says cybercrimes factor into traditional crimes against children. Online exploitation, such as sextortion, can lead to someone being pulled into trafficking. According to the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children, sextortion is a form of child sexual exploitation where children are threatened or blackmailed, most often with the possibility of sharing with the public nude or sexual images of them, by a person who demands additional sexual content, sexual activity or money from the child.

“Traffickers engage in online sexual conversations and role-playing to groom victims,” Thompson says. “They ask children to send them sexually explicit images. They develop a rapport on social media platforms by liking posts, offering compliments and discussing interests.”

The child or individual involved is placed in a vulnerable position by not knowing who is on the other end of the screen or conversation. Traffickers and sextortion criminal actors are able to talk to multiple people at once and play on different vulnerabilities.

“It takes place online with the children in our communities. Sexual exploitation of our youth is plaguing the communities in West Virginia,” Jankowski says.

Human trafficking is such a complex issue that there are multiple definitions of what sexual exploitation is, however, the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention defines commercial sexual exploitation of a child as referring to a range of crimes and activities involving the sexual abuse or exploitation of a child for the financial benefit of any person, or in exchange for anything of value given or received by any person. In 2022, The National Center for Missing & Exploited Children’s CyberTipline received more than 32 million reports of suspected child sexual exploitation. Jankowski says hundreds of these cases are being worked every day in West Virginia, with that number increasing.

Despite these modern challenges, hope is not lost. Federal, state and local agencies—including the Department of Homeland Security, FBI, West Virginia State Police and the West Virginia Human Trafficking Task Force—are focused on these investigations. The task force meets bi-annually and consists of the U.S. attorneys of the southern and northern districts of West Virginia, FBI, WVFC, state police, West Virginia Foundation for Rape Information and Services, Secretary of State’s Office, Attorney General’s Office, Homeland Security Investigations and other federal, state and local law enforcement officers, service providers, victim associates, educators and representatives.

“The focus of this task force is aligning the individual agencies to have the greatest collective impact on the state of West Virginia,” Yount says. “The task force also focuses on how victims can receive the services they need and deserve after going through something as traumatic as sex trafficking or labor trafficking.”

The state of West Virginia’s first statewide human trafficking initiative was launched in September 2023. The WVFC launched the YOU CAN initiative to offer West Virginians a local reporting line so the information can be relayed to the appropriate federal, state and local authorities for investigation, intervention and action.

“Human trafficking is significantly underreported, partly due to lack of public awareness. Since its inception in 2007, the Human Trafficking Hotline has received more than 800 calls, resulting in 550 victims identified in 246 cases in West Virginia. The available data might give the impression human trafficking is not prevalent in West Virginia, but that’s not true,” says Jack Luikart, director of the WVFC. “Human trafficking is often significantly underreported because it is not understood, and there is a lack of community awareness of these activities and reporting mechanisms, which is why the YOU CAN initiative is so vital.”

False and misinformation on human trafficking impacts what the public knows about it. Conn says more than 90% of victims know their trafficker.

“When you Google the term human trafficking, the images that come up are not how trafficking is presented in America, so communities and victims do not see or understand the context of how it looks when it is happening in their neighborhoods,” Conn says. “They are still looking for kidnapping and duct taping or physical imprisonment when the simple reality is human trafficking is hidden in plain sight.”

West Virginians who suspect criminal activity is happening to someone they know may submit a human trafficking tip in multiple ways. They can go online at go.wv.gov/TipsHT, email wvfusion@wv.gov, call 1-888-373-7888 or text BE FREE (233733). Organizations interested in displaying YOU CAN materials or requesting free training from the WVFC are encouraged to email the WVFC. Victims in need of help are encouraged to call 911 or the National Human Trafficking Hotline.

“When citizens are empowered to report the signs of trafficking and talk about the problem, our communities become part of the solution,” says Mark Sorsaia, secretary of the West Virginia Department of Homeland Security. “We all need to be aware and work to intervene and mitigate this terrible behavior to protect our friends, neighbors and our children.”

For the general public, the best course of action is under­standing the seriousness of these crimes, what they can look like and knowing they are a threat to society so we can keep our families safe. Community outreach plays a key role in the fight against human trafficking, and the FBI, WVFC, U.S. attorneys and other agencies aim to be proactive in this battle.

“We spend time educating children in schools and the faculty within schools on online safety, child exploitation and human trafficking. We also spend time educating parents, caregivers, relatives, child protective services, foster care, law enforcement agencies and the like on these topics,” Baushke says. “This battle can’t be fought without the partnership of our communities. It is important for our communities to become educated and learn about this threat so the crime can be stopped within the home and prior to the victimization of a child.”

The concept of using bribes and manipulation for personal gain has existed for ages. In today’s connected world, the opportunities for human trafficking, child exploitation and abuse to occur are widely available. For some, generational abuse of this type is the norm. Now is the time to be informed about this modern-day slavery so we can take precautions, inform others and ultimately prevent future cases from happening.