North Texas officials highlight efforts to end human trafficking, help victims
In honor of National Human Trafficking Awareness Day, local officials Tuesday morning highlighted communal and organizational efforts to combat labor and sexual exploitation throughout Fort Worth, Tarrant County and the North Texas region.
“Human trafficking is believed to be the third largest international crime category. It’s challenging to quantify actual revenue from this crime, but some estimates reveal that revenue is close to $150 billion a year,” Homeland Security Assistant Special Agent in Charge Matt Wright said. “These unthinkable crimes and horrific abuses are happening every single day throughout the world, in cities large and small, in towns and rural areas and unfortunately … right here at home in Tarrant County and all of the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex.”
In Tarrant County and Fort Worth specifically, the fight against human trafficking has been organized into various task forces, including one called the Tarrant County 5 Stones, which “unifies various levels of government, community agencies and concerned individuals,” through focusing on awareness, training, restoration, legislative advocacy and demand. The 5 Stones Task Force works to support the police department and local agencies and develops effective responses to trafficking, officials said.
Alongside the Tarrant County 5 Stones task force, the county also has a human trafficking task force made up of the Tarrant County Sheriff’s Office and local nonprofit Unbound, both of whom work toward community awareness, investigations and providing trauma-informed services for victims.
“Texas is No. 2 for in the nation for human trafficking, and how do you explain that? Well, let me explain it, because sex trafficking is a problem, we don’t sweep it under the rug. We face it and we go after them,” Tarrant County Sheriff Bill Waybourn said.
As of May, the Tarrant County Human Trafficking Task Force has made over 100 arrests connected to human trafficking. The task force says nearly 90 victims, and potential victims, have been identified and offered recovery services.
“We come together as an incredible team to combat this scourge and I think that the biggest thing today is we’re celebrating this and saying, ‘Hey, we’re celebrating human trafficking going away. We’re going to come after [traffickers]. We’re going to get rid of you. You are unacceptable in our society,’” Waybourn said. “We got to pay attention to the victims and we need to rescue them now, hand them over and get them where they can be adults again and out of that.”
The 5 Stones and Tarrant County Human Trafficking task forces have also partnered with the North Texas Trafficking Task Force, which Wright said has emphasized a victim-centered approach to its investigations.
“We have the opportunity to both identify and disrupt and dismantle these criminal organizations responsible for facilitating these crimes, but also making sure that we’re able to provide the victims services that they need to move forward and be survivors,” Wright said.
Wright said nationwide, the Department of Homeland Security made over 2,300 arrests connected to human trafficking, while being able to aid over 700 victims, over the course of the last year. In Dallas-Fort Worth, around 178 individuals were arrested in connection to similar crimes and nearly 30 victims were provided assistance in the same time period.
“We understand that this is a profit-driven crime, and we were able to identify and seize assets in excess of $2 million related to human trafficking last year. Hopefully, hitting where it hurts in the criminals’ front pockets,” Wright added. “We’re going to do everything that we can do to ensure those who facilitated organized profit, in any way to human trafficking, are held responsible for their crimes and brought swiftly to justice.”
Officials, including North Texas Regional Administrator for the Governor’s Child Sex Trafficking Team Dr. Tomi Grover, also highlighted an annual billboard campaign called “Trafficking Starts Here,” reminding residents that predators often use the internet and social media to attract and groom victims.
“Exploitation of youth today online, as well as in person, is a heinous crime and targeted efforts to prevent and eradicate such exploitation are a top priority of our office over the last four years,” Grover said. “With the addition of a federally funded task force on human trafficking in Tarrant County, these efforts have been supportive of the collaborative work to educate and engage the community.”
Grover, Wright and Waybourn were joined by Fort Worth Mayor Mattie Parker, Fort Worth Police Chief Neil Noakes and Tarrant County Assistant Criminal District Attorney Lindy Borchardt at a news conference on Tuesday morning. They spoke about similar sentiments of hope toward the continued effort of combating sexual exploitation in the future.
This story was originally published January 11, 2022 at 1:54 PM.
