SUMMIT COUNTY, Ohio (WOIO) – An undercover investigation by the Summit County Sheriff’s Office busted a human trafficking operation on Oct. 15.
The sheriff’s office said numerous women were detained for further investigation, as well as offered victim services and evaluations at the Akron General Hospital SANE Unit.
Three of those women accepted the offer for victim services, according to the sheriff.
The U.S. Marshals Service recently launched a nationwide effort to recover missing and exploited children. Three major operations rescued over 100 children, many of them from sex traffickers. But a disturbing trend discovered during the operation should launch a nationwide investigation into the American child welfare system. PJ Media reached out to USMS for details on the rescued children and was told that the majority of them came from foster care. This information was ignored in the initial media reports on the operation. Dave Oney, press contact at the USMS, responded via email to questions about the rescued children.
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COLUMBUS, Ohio — A Franklin County, Ohio, grand jury indicted three men for human trafficking and prostitution.
Franklin County Prosecutor Ron O’Brien said the grand jury returned a 23 count RICO indictment against Marcus Jahroam Carmon, 36, Anthony Lamont Dunn, 46, and Bradley C. Powell, 28.
Prosecutors said Carmon was the ring leader and has been charged with the following:
-Engaging in a Pattern of Corrupt Activity
-Trafficking in Persons – Commercial Sex Acts with Specification
-Compelling Prostitution
The Federal Bureau of Investigation on Tuesday arrested the pastor of St. Michael the Archangel Parish, alleging that he groomed and sexually assaulted minors for years, beginning in Toledo, OH. Special Agent in Charge Eric Smith said the Rev. Michael Zacharias, 53, is believed to have groomed and sexually assaulted minors since the late 1990s.
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When Jennifer Bates rappels down the side of a 330-foot-tall Downtown bank building Friday to help raise money and awareness for minor victims of sex trafficking, it will be the next chapter in her emotional and personal journey as a survivor. And she will rappel beside the Columbus police officer she says saved her life.
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Toledo, Ohio — Pablo Ramirez was sentenced to three years in prison and ordered to pay a $70,000 fine in a trafficking-related case. “Ramirez exploited the desperation of migrant workers and, in some instances, their children for his own personal financial gain,” said U.S. Attorney Justin Herdman. “Human trafficking can take many forms, and this sentence reflects the Justice Department’s commitment to combat this plague in every shape it takes.”
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Lima, Ohio — Man sentenced to nearly 42 years for sex trafficking a 14-year-old girl. As part of his sentence, Cochran will pay full restitution to the victim and others impacted by the crimes. “While unthinkable to most of us, sex trafficking of children is real and organized,” said David M. DeVillers, the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio in Columbus. “We must recognize the unthinkable and report suspicious activity for the sake of our most vulnerable”.
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Scioto County, Ohio – A federal grand jury has indicted a Scioto County man and several of his family members and associates with charges related to a child sex trafficking operation. According to United States Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio David M. DeVillers, the man allegedly exchanged drugs obtained in Columbus and elsewhere for sexual access to the children of drug-addicted mothers. The FBI’s Child Exploitation Task Force agents began investigating Larry Dean Porter, 69, in April 2019.
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Ohio– The U.S. Attorney’s Office, for the southern district of Ohio, says 28-year-old Nicholas Salvadore Cochran was sentenced 42 years in prison. Aside from the prison time, Cochran has been ordered to pay full restitution to the victim, court costs, and a fine, as well as remain under court supervision for life.
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Dayton, Ohio– Sex trafficking has increased because of job loss, a lack of housing security and reduced social and public services according to Abolition Ohio, an anti trafficking coalition organized by the University of Dayton. The public is invited to attend on Zoom The Abolition Ohio Monthly Anti-Human Trafficking Coalition Meetings to learn about resources available to students, educators, and community members in order to keep kids safe from trafficking and exploitation.
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Two men were indicted in U.S. District Court in Toledo on Wednesday in separate cases of sexually exploiting a minor and possessing child pornography, according to court documents. One of the accused allegedly sent nude photos of the girl, which appear to be taken by hidden cameras. He also told an Oregon man that he had been experimenting with drugs to see which ones work best on the child.
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A sex trafficker survivor from Ohio will be released from prison. “She will be sent to a group home and she will be under supervision for an extensive period of time. When the victim was 15 years-old she planned the murder of the trafficker. When she was 17, she received a sentence for 21 years. Ohio’s Supreme Court chief justice knew that he had forced her into sex trafficking but kept her sentence.
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In Portsmouth, Ohio a former city council member and defense attorney has been detained. He is rumored to be a key player in a sex trafficking ring. Police have been looking into him since 2018. The prosecution is now being held by the state attorneys office. 
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In Cleveland, Ohio two people have been charged with human trafficking. A 20-year-old woman recruited three teenage girls to participate in sexual activity. A pastor patronized these girls twice. He paid to have sex with the underage girls around August and November in 2018. If convicted, the woman could face up to 10-15 years while the pastor could face up to six years.
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In Cleveland, Ohio a priest was charged with possession of child pornography and now he faces other charges. He has been indicted by a Cuyahoga County grand jury and he faces allegations in Geauga County involving children and abuse.
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MGM Northfield Park is donating $10,000 to a local task force that is dedicated to stopping human trafficking in northeastern Ohio. Summit County Sheriff Division of Human Trafficking and Prostitution will help with healthcare for victims and provide resources to the sheriff’s department. MGM Northfield Park is also offering training to its employees to understand the signs for human trafficking. Ohio reported around 400 cases to the National Human Trafficking Hotline. Ohio is fourth in the number of cases.
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The National Underground Railroad Freedom Center in Cincinnati, Ohio is hosting special events on Thursday February 13th. People from across the world will join together and raise awareness. “End It” movement calls for people to draw a red X on their hands to represent the millions that are enslaved. Ohio ranks fourth for the number of human trafficking cases.
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Lawyers in Columbus, OH. representing human trafficking victims want a single federal judge to oversee multiple lawsuits alleging that major hotel chains have ignored human trafficking taking place on their premises.
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The ringleader of the group, Samuel Lee Edwards, 49, of Columbus, OH, and his associates would use narcotics to manipulate and control their victims, who were threatened and assaulted if they did not comply with demands. The associates assisted with transporting, recruiting and supervising the women, as well as drug trafficking.
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Taniece Temple appeared on the show Wednesday for her first on-camera interview since her abuser was sentenced. Temple was only 13 years old when her Toledo, OH pastor, Anthony Haynes, started sexually abusing her and forcing her to have sex with anyone he chose.
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Ohio lawmakers proposed a bill to create a public registry that will include the names of people who are convicted of buying sexual services. The bill’s goal is to increase penalties for johns and pimps.
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A former Youngstown, OH Police Department dispatcher pleaded guilty to a charge of attempted obstructing justice and was sentenced to 18 months of probation. Elaine Hellman, 72, is the second person to plead guilty in a case involving human trafficking.
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Kevin Kishaun Martin, 46, and his girlfriend Lyndzy Michelle Donovan, 35, of Columbus, OH, would prey upon females on the street promising them a better life, lure them into their home or a hotel where they provided the females with drugs, and then demanded that they work the streets to pay back their debt.
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Pascal Lamont Williams, 46, of Dayton, OH, is accused along with another man, James “Damean” Rowles, of holding four women against their will for months, forcing them to engage in sex acts on both Williams and Rowles, as well as other people in exchange for drugs or money.
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The Well Drop-In Center at the Salvation Army’s location, 2300 W. Mound St. Columbus, OH 43204, will be open Wednesdays and Fridays. It will provide survivors with a safe place, plus food and help finding shelter, along with detox services if needed, said Michelle Hannan, the anti-human-trafficking director at the Salvation Army.
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A diversion program for victims of human trafficking is spreading to cities around the country. The model has roots in Columbus, Ohio, where a judge decided to direct women toward rehabilitation instead of jail.
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An old post about sex trafficking and black zip ties already once debunked is making the rounds again on social media, but it’s still not true.
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More than 100 people in three central Ohio counties have been arrested in a massive human trafficking and internet sex sting. Among those charged include Austin Kosier, a 31-year-old doctor, who worked in the emergency department at Genesis Healthcare System and Christian Gibson, 26, a youth director in training at Redeemer’s at Courtright Church. Both men are charged with two felonies – attempted unlawful conduct with a minor and importuning. Kosier and Gibson are also accused of traveling to meet a 15-year-old girl to engage in sexual activity.
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Nicholas Cochran, 28, of Lima, OH, who’s a registered sex offender, coerced a 14-year-old girl to have sex with men for money. The Justice Department announced Friday it has filed child sex trafficking, child pornography and other charges against Cochran. Prosecutors say he connected with the teenage girl on Snapchat.
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Dr. Albert Aiad-Toss, 52, of Canfield, OH, has been indicted on four counts of sex trafficking a minor and one count of production of child pornography. Authorities say Aiad-Toss allegedly “used force, threats of force, fraud or other coercion to cause three minor victims to engage in commercial sex acts” in June. The victims involved were between the ages of 12 and 14 years old.
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A Toledo, OH man will spend the next 35 years behind bars after he was sentenced for sex trafficking involving a minor. Lawrence Jones, 32, previously pleaded guilty to one count of sex trafficking of a minor and one count of sexual exploitation of a minor. Jones met the minor via social media who had run away from home and transported the girl to a home in Toledo, where he took nude photographs of her and posted them online, offering commercial sex acts in the Toledo area.
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Human trafficking is a business with supply and demand: The supply is the victims, and the demand is the customers.
But who are the customers?
Four women who have completed Herbert’s CATCH Court told the assembled officers what their former lives were like, and how it is so important that police try to help those who remain on the streets.
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Reverend Anthony Haynes is serving life in federal prison for leading the nearly three-year-long child sex trafficking scheme in Toledo, Ohio. A federal jury found him guilty of engaging in sex trafficking with a minor, sex trafficking of a minor, sexual exploitation of a minor, and obstructing a sex trafficking investigation.
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Authorities found two guns in Miquel Jones’ home when they arrested him in May 2018 after finding him with a 16-year-old girl whose parents had reported her missing.
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aura Lloyd told a judge before she was sentenced to 21 months for lying to investigators. Her ex-husband, Cordell Jenkins, was sentenced life in prison for having sex with a teenager at his home and church office while recording the acts with his phone.
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During the stop, OSHP says the officer noticed a young female riding with an older male. Neither the girl or the man had identification on them or spoke English. Police say it was confirmed that the man had forced the girl to perform acts on him and that the girl was being taken to Chicago from New Jersey.
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Two Columbus, OH. men were sentenced for their roles in sex trafficking dozens of women in the Columbus area. Curtis Gossett was sentenced to 13 years in prison, while Jeffrey Bagley received 10 years. Their charges included engaging in a pattern of corrupt activity.
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Advocates say referrals to a Franklin County specialty docket for people arrested for sex work were down 50 percent in 2018, at least in part because of the suspension and eventual disbandment of the Columbus Division of Police’s Vice Unit.
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The Columbus City Attorney and Franklin County Sheriff announced their offices worked together to shut down a massage parlor that investigators say was a front for illegal sex acts. A months-long investigation revealed a pattern of prostitution at Sunflower Asian Spa in a Hilliard area strip mall.
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The Ohio Department of Public Safety’s Office of Criminal Justice Services (OCJS) recently announced the results of a human trafficking study that analyzed the extent to which youth and young adults are exploited in Ohio. The study identified 1,032 juvenile human trafficking victims in Ohio between 2014 and 2016. Researchers also identified 4,209 youth who were at risk for trafficking victimization.
“We are hopeful that the findings of this study, an inventory of data capacity and tracking, will lead to the creation of tools and systems that will ultimately help identify and respond to victims of human trafficking,” Anderson said in a news release.
“Whether one self-identifies as a sex worker or is a victim of trafficking, I believe we can all agree that these individuals have rights,” said Sen. Kathleen Taylor (D-Milwaukie), who carried the bill on the Senate floor. “All humans, no matter their particular situation, are valuable and deserve safety and access to the justice system, as well as the resources that come with accessing that system.”
Read MoreOhio is getting a clearer picture on the number of victims of human trafficking. A new study from the University of Cincinnati identified 1,032 victims between 2014 and 2016 and another 4,209 individuals at risk of being trafficked during the same period.
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An Ohio State student organization is working to educate the public about the human trafficking crisis shortly after an Ohio grant put the issue more in the public eye.
Why Us? Is a group founded to spread awareness of the severity of trafficking and its impact on college campuses.
The victims range in age from 12 to 66 years old, according to a news release from the Cuyahoga County, OH. Additionally, 227 individuals have been interviewed and given a referral for recovery services.
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The county announced the statistics because the Collaborative to End Human Trafficking recently held its annual meeting, and the county wants to ensure the issue remains in the public’s eye.
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Locally, on January 25th, End Slavery Cincinnati and The Salvation Army of Greater Cincinnati & Northern Kentucky will present the 2019 Anti-Human Trafficking Conference at the American Red Cross of Cincinnati. The conference will educate participants on improving the healthcare response to human trafficking, strategies to aid and provide legal services to survivors, and other topics within a selection of 12 workshops. There will also be a keynote address on advocacy delivered by a panel of human trafficking survivors.
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“I think it was six years I’m in and out of cars right here on these streets of Akron, Ohio until one night I ended up on a street and I remember screaming out to God, kill me or save me but don’t let me live like this,” Angel said. God didn’t leave Angel in that world. She was found her when she was drug addicted and hopeless and sitting in prison. But she’s not in that place anymore.
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A local website is facing backlash after attempting to be humorous about the foreclosure crisis and sex trafficking.
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Attorney Robert Poole pleaded not guilty Monday to 15 charges including human trafficking of a minor and rape. A police investigation into human trafficking charges against prominent conservative activist and former judge Tim Nolan led to a tip about Poole, said Kentucky Attorney General Andy Beshear Nov. 16 in a news release. The 50-year-old Poole was arrested Nov. 16 at his Erlanger law office. A Kenton County grand jury indicted Poole on sex crimes charges.
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A Norwalk man is headed to federal prison for 20 years after luring two teenage girls by playing the role of a movie producer. Charles Thomas Barbarotta used fraud to convince two minors to engage in commercial sex acts. He told two teenage girls he was a movie producer.
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An Akron, Ohio couple was sentenced to prison on a slew of human trafficking charges, prosecutors said. Darren Townsend, 38, and Pearl Coffey, 35, were charged with multiple counts of compelling prostitution, trafficking in persons, promoting prostitution and corrupting another with drugs, according to the Summit County Prosecutor’s Office.
Read MoreAuthorities announced Thursday that more than 100 charges have been filed against five people in connection with an alleged sex trafficking ring in Mahoning County.
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A study conducted by researchers at The University of Toledo shows that there is a link between social media and sex trafficking. The traffickers can easily go online and prey on vulnerable youth. Dr. Celia Williamson, UT professor of social work and director of the UT Human Trafficking and Social Justice Institute state that it is crucial “educate parents, professionals, and youth—especially our middle school or teenage daughters who may be insecure—about the dangers of online predatory practices used by master manipulators.”
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“They are enslaved, they can’t leave,” Victory said. “You will not see chains and ropes, but the psychological bonds are just as strong.”
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A Toledo man on Wednesday was sentenced to seven years in prison and three years on probation for soliciting nude images from a 15-year-old girl, whom he also molested.
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Authorities say Ronald Hellman’s four counts of ‘compelling prostitution’ are just the tip of a very large iceberg.
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Police in Columbus, Ohio, on Thursday claimed their arrest of porn star Stormy Daniels at a local strip club for allegedly touching undercover cops stemmed from a long-term probe of human trafficking, prostitution and other vice crimes at local adult hot spots.
Read MoreCiting the “extensive media coverage” his case has received, one of three Toledo area pastors charged with sex trafficking children is asking the court to move his trial to Cleveland.
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Sitting on stationary rowing machines, the exercise coaches at Orangetheory Fitness, a gym near Whole Foods Market in Akron, tried not to laugh as they started a serious 100,000-meter (about 52 miles) journey to support RAHAB Ministries, an Akron agency that supports female victims of sex trafficking.
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On a typical day, Kendra Ross said she would work as many as 17 unpaid hours in a Dayton restaurant while under the control of what she later claimed in federal court was a cult.
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A man police say have promoted prostitution and human trafficking for years in central Ohio has been arrested.
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Authorities say 34-year-old Oscar Carter and 27-year-old Shelby Summer Brown, both from Tulsa, Okla., have been indicted by a federal grand jury in Pittsburgh on multiple sex trafficking charges, including sex trafficking of a child.
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