CONTENT WARNING: This article discusses sexual abuse and human trafficking.
There was a huge human trafficking sting that took place during the San Diego Comic-Con this weekend, with 14 arrests made and 10 victims recovered.
The California Department of Justice’s San Diego Human Trafficking Task Force completed a major sting operation to clamp down on sex buyers and recover victims. San Diego Comic-Con attracts over 100,000 fans each year, so the department knew human traffickers would try to take advantage of this massive event.
“Unfortunately, sex traffickers capitalise on large-scale events such as Comic-Con to exploit their victims for profit,” California Attorney General Rob Bonta said.
“These arrests send a clear message to potential offenders that their criminal behaviour will not be tolerated. We are grateful to all our dedicated partners involved in the San Diego Human Trafficking Task Force, whose collaboration has been invaluable.”
Law enforcement officials posed as undercover sex buyers at the convention so they could recover victims and arrest their would-be traffickers. In addition to this, officials shared undercover ads that were soliciting sex so they could arrest sex buyers.
Celebs and studios use San Diego Comic-Con to make big media announcements. (Image: Getty)
The recovered potential victims included nine adults and one 16-year-old, with support advocates on hand to provide both adult and juvenile support.
“There is no more insidious crime than human trafficking. The coercion and violence which enslaves people for profit and places them into forced labour or sex is criminal,” San Diego Sheriff Kelly Martinez said in a statement.
“As the Sheriff, I support the efforts of all our justice partners in holding perpetrators accountable. I appreciate the focus that was placed on the recent convention to identify and rescue victims of human trafficking.”
According to the San Diego Human Trafficking Task’s statement, the sting was a “cooperative effort” involving the DOJ, California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, California Highway Patrol, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Homeland Security Investigations, National City Police Department, San Diego City Attorney’s Office, San Diego County District Attorney’s Office, San Diego County Probation Department, San Diego County Sheriff’s Department, San Diego Police Department, Southwest Border High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area, and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of California. The Naval Criminal Investigative Service also assisted in the operation.
At this stage, the organisers of SDCC have not yet commented on the arrests or sting.
Help is available.
- If you require immediate assistance, please call 000.
- If you’d like to speak to someone about sexual violence, please call the 1800 Respect hotline on 1800 737 732 or chat online.
- Under 25? You can reach Kids Helpline at 1800 55 1800 or chat online.
Feature Image: Getty
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