For this edition of the Journal, we have an article from the Indiana Attorney General’s Office dealing with human trafficking. If you wish to take an online class on human trafficking after reading this article, use the link at the end which will take you to the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center (FLETC) webpage.

Upon successfully completing this training, print the certificate provided at the end of the class, place this number (52-0907065) on the certificate and give a copy of that certificate to your department training coordinator. If you have any questions about this procedure, call Deputy Director Michael Lindsay, (317) 839-5191.

Human Trafficking in Indiana: Training for Law Enforcement

By: Nicole Baldonado, Project Manager, Human Trafficking Prevention - 11/15/12

            Human trafficking is the fastest growing and second largest criminal industry in the world,[i] generating roughly $32 billion annually for the criminal underworld.[ii] According to the U.S. State Department, an estimated 27 million men, women, and children are victims of human trafficking throughout the world.[iii] Human trafficking occurs when people are recruited to work or provide services through the use of force, fraud, or coercion, and it includes both labor and sex trafficking.

Some common misperceptions about this crime are that it does not occur in the U.S. and that American citizens do not become victims. In reality, between 100,000 and 300,000 U.S. children are victims of commercial sex trafficking each year.[iv] Shockingly, in the U.S., the average age of entry into commercial sex is 12-14,[v] and 83 percent of minor sex trafficking victims found in the United States are U.S. citizens.[vi] Statistics and experience from agencies involved in anti-trafficking demonstrate that the problem of trafficking—both labor and sex—has been found in local communities throughout Indiana. Local and state law enforcement officials are in positions to identify potential trafficking scenarios and recover victims.

Sex trafficking is defined under federal law as a commercial sex act induced by force, fraud, or coercion, or in which the person induced is under 18 years of age.[vii] In the state of Indiana, anyone induced in commercial sex who is under the age of 16[viii] is considered a victim of trafficking.[ix] Labor trafficking is the “recruitment, harboring, transportation, provision, or obtaining of a person for labor or services, through the use of force, fraud, or coercion for the purpose of . . . involuntary servitude, peonage, debt bondage, or slavery."[x]

Human trafficking is found in many industries, including commercial sex, factories, restaurants, hotels, health and beauty industries, forced labor in agricultural or construction industries, and domestic servitude as servants, housekeepers, or nannies. Individuals may be recruited into trafficking situations through fake employment agencies, word of mouth, acquaintances or family members, newspaper ads, and front businesses, among other methods. Traffickers maintain control over their victims through physical violence, threats against the victims or their loved ones, and psychological coercion. They may be part of larger organized crime rings or may operate independently. They are often the same race or ethnicity as the victim, may be bilingual, and may be acquainted with the victim’s community and family. 

Victim Profiles

Victims of human trafficking often come from vulnerable backgrounds, such as poverty, unemployment, childhood abuse, homelessness, and other situations leading to desperation. In cases involving foreign-born victims, they may have left home countries torn by war or conflict, or there may have been little economic opportunity in their homeland. Foreign-born victims may also be vulnerable if they do not speak English or do not know their rights in this country. One of the key vulnerabilities for human trafficking victims is youth, and there are strong correlations between chronic runaways, involvement in the child welfare system, and minors who become trafficking victims.

Often, victims of human trafficking are coerced into their current situations because traffickers lie to them about the work they will be doing. In debt bondage scenarios, individuals might be recruited from other countries to come work in the United States. The traffickers “assist” them in obtaining travel documents and passage to the U.S., but once they arrive, the victims are told they owe a debt for these services and must work off that debt before they are free to leave. Frequently, they are also forced to live and eat in crowded, unsanitary housing “provided” by the traffickers, which adds to the amount they owe. Although the traffickers may claim to have accounts where their earnings are kept until the debt is paid off, no such account exists, and the victims are seemingly unable to ever pay off their debt.

In cases of sex trafficking, victims are often wooed into romantic relationships that later turn into the so-called “boyfriends” pimping them out for their own profit. The rationale for pimps behind using this “grooming process” is to create an emotional bond between themselves and their victims, which allows them to maintain psychological control over them. This bond, referred to as “trauma bonding,” is similar to the bond between a victim and a perpetrator of domestic violence or to Stockholm Syndrome.[xi] Sex traffickers often force their victims to meet monetary quotas to avoid being beaten, and they may take all the money that victims make.[xii] Some pimps even brand victims with tattoos and other markings in order to demonstrate ownership of them.[xiii]

Contrary to commonly believed myths, prostitution is not a victimless crime committed between two consenting adults. We have already pointed out that the average age of entry into commercial sex is 12-14. Whether involving adults or minors, the risks of commercial sex are so high that the average age of death among prostitutes is 34, and “ . . . the American Journal of Epidemiology reported that prostitutes suffer a ‘workplace homicide rate’ 51 times higher than that of the next most dangerous occupation, working in a liquor store.”[xiv] While involved in commercial sex, individuals face considerable violence at the hands of both traffickers and those who purchase their “services.” In one study, 82% of women in prostitution had been physically assaulted, 83% had been threatened with a weapon, 68% had been raped, and 84% reported current or past homelessness.[xv]

Life is extremely risky and violent for victims of both labor and sex trafficking. Often, traffickers threaten victims and their families if they try to escape. Also, they commonly lie to victims about their legal rights. For example, in cases of foreign-born victims, traffickers may threaten that they will be deported if they try to leave. In sex trafficking scenarios, traffickers often threaten that their victims will be arrested for prostitution if they seek help. In addition, despite the atrocities that victims face, their traffickers may have a strong psychological hold over them, resulting from the trauma they have experienced.

Enforcement Problems

Law enforcement officials may encounter trafficking situations in their line of work and it is critical that they receive training on trafficking indicators, the nature of trafficking investigations, and the unique needs of victims of this crime, as well as the services available to those identified. Free online training is available via the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center (FLETC) website at http://www.fletc.gov/training/programs/human-trafficking-training-program. This training was developed by the FLETC and provides an overall introduction to the issue from a law enforcement perspective. The ILEA is also partnering with the Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department and the Office of the Indiana Attorney General to develop additional training resources for Indiana officers.

Indicators

Some human trafficking indicators that law enforcement should be aware of include:

·         Rooms may have numerous beds on the floor and/or small rooms throughout the residence that have locks on the outside of the doors.

·         Locks may be on many/all of the windows to keep people from coming in AND getting out.

·         Victims may exhibit signs of physical and/or sexual abuse such as: bruises, burns, scars, broken bones, black eyes, poor hygiene, and/or malnourishment.

·         Victims may demonstrate signs of intense fear or depression.

·         Victims may not make eye contact with anyone.

·         Victims typically are not left alone.  There may be someone attempting to speak for them, and this person may appear very controlling over the group. Victims may seem dependent on this person.

·         Communication with victims may seem scripted and/or vague, inconsistent.

·         Victims may be living and working in the same location.

·         Victims may not have control over their own personal identification documents. Typically, traffickers take/control victims’ ID documents.

·         Victims may have false or fraudulent identification documents.

·         Victims may not speak English.

·         Victims are likely to be very distrustful of law enforcement. Therefore, victims may not admit they are victims and may not ask for help.

Summary

For a list of these indicators and other resources on human trafficking, please visit the Indiana Attorney General’s website at www.in.gov/attorneygeneral/humantrafficking/. Additional law enforcement resources on this topic can be found at:

• U.S. Department of Health and Human Services: http://www.acf.hhs.gov/programs/orr/resource/rescue-restore-campaign-tool-kits.
• Polaris Project: http://www.polarisproject.org/resources/tools-for-service-providers-and-law-enforcement

If you have questions or would like more information, please contact Nicole Baldonado at Nicole.baldonado@atg.in.gov or 317.234.7140.

If you work in a unique segment of law enforcement and would like to tell others about your responsibilities, department or training please submit an article to the Journal.

To submit an article, contact ILEA Deputy Director Mike Lindsay.

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