Human trafficking happens in Erie County, sheriff says

SANDUSKY — Does human trafficking and sex trafficking happen in Erie County?Nine recent arrests in the county, as a part of a federal sex trafficking investigation, suggest human trafficking does happen in north-central Ohio, just like it does in bigger cities like Cleveland or Toledo.Ohio criminal law defines human trafficking as when a person recruits and harbors another person when they know that person "will be subjected to involuntary servitude or be compelled to engage in sexual activity for hire."That happens everywhere, including Erie County, Erie County Sheriff Paul Sigsworth said."I doubt there's any area immune from this type of activity," Sigsworth said. "The more people you have, the more of this you're going to have."Sigsworth said an influx of tourists and visitors to the area could be a contributing factor. But even if it does happen, police often don't hear about it."The more people you have, the more of this you're going to have," he said. "We don't get many complaints, but a lot of people involved in this activity don't complain."Recent incidentsOn July 18, local law enforcement and FBI agents conducted an operation at a Huron Township business. Undercover agents contacted women on social media advertising themselves as prostitutes, and after agreeing to pay for sex acts, arrested the women at the business.It was one of more than 100 similar operations done as a part of the FBI's month-long, nationwide Operation Independence Day — intended to arrest sex traffickers and recover child victims of sex trafficking. Across the U.S., 82 child victims were recovered and 67 traffickers were arrested.Sigsworth said they didn't recover any child victims in Erie County, and none of the nine people charged — all of whom are adults — were charged with human trafficking. He did say the investigation was ongoing and suggested more serious charges could be on the horizon.Then on July 31, state agents and local police raided Top Relax Massage on Milan Road (U.S. 250) in Perkins Township as a part of a separate commercial sex trafficking investigation.No one was arrested at Top Relax Massage that day, but federal grand juries in Cuyahoga and Medina counties indicted seven people on promoting prosecution charges relating to the raid at Top Relax Massage and 12 other massage parlors in Ohio.'Prostitution is human trafficking'The allegations surrounding Top Relax Massage aren't anything new to Erie County."It is certainly here, it's always been here," Sigsworth said.He said in the mid-1990s, authorities encountered two massage parlors that were engaging in similar illegal sex activity. Police arrested employees at those parlors, which were later shut down."(It was) the same type of situation," Sigsworth said.But back then, there were no laws about human trafficking, he said. Law enforcement instead focused on the money involved in illegal schemes.Sigsworth said people who work as prostitutes are often victimized."A lot of these young ladies and men aren't doing this because they want to, they're doing this because they have to, in most cases because they're (drug) addicted," he said. "Traffickers take advantage of their vulnerability."Traffickers are often the prostitutes' drug suppliers, making them dependent on the traffickers, Sigsworth said. Traffickers can also coerce prostitutes to work for them "under threat of force.""At its root, prostitution is human trafficking," he said.Recognizing the signsTracy McGinley, a criminal justice professor at BGSU Firelands, said human traffickers seek to exert control over their victims. A lot of times, they do that with drugs."Sometimes, through a grooming process, a pimp will get you addicted to drugs," McGinley said. "It's easier to control you if they get you addicted to drugs."Traffickers will also do things like "brand" young girls and women with neck tattoos of the trafficker's name as a way of marking their "property," she said. McGinley agreed that human trafficking happens everywhere."Toledo has a huge (human trafficking) task force, they do so much over there because its a big city," she said. "People think it doesn't happen in rural areas but we're not exempt from it by any means."McGinley and her students frequently do projects raising awareness on human and sex trafficking. She also helped found the Erie County Human Trafficking Task Force earlier this year.The group will work with local agencies to formulate plans on how to identify human trafficking, and also plans to offer education to community groups, like churches, McGinley said.She said that anyone who suspects they know someone who's involved in human trafficking should call 911 immediately. If someone's not sure if a situation is human trafficking, or if they want to get more information on the topic, they can call the National Human Trafficking Hotline at 1-888-373-7888.Visit our Erie County Sheriff's Office hub for more storiesReach reporter Brandon Addeo at brandonaddeo@sanduskyregister.com, follow him on Twitter @BrandonAddeo and follow the Register at Facebook.com/SanduskyRegisterA Perkins police cruiser sits in front of Top Relax Massage on Milan Road Wednesday, July 31.