Missing 17-year-old found with suspected traffickers during traffic stop, TN cops say
.jpg "Two adults are accused of trafficking a 17-year-old girl who was missing from Knoxville, Tennessee officials said.")
A missing teenager was rescued from possible sex trafficking after she was discovered during a traffic stop, Tennessee officials say.
A state trooper stopped a vehicle for “a routine traffic stop” on Tuesday, Feb. 21, in Hickman County, according to a news release from the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation. Inside were two adults — a man and a woman — and a 17-year-old girl.
After questioning the adults and the teenager, investigators determined that the girl was the subject of an active missing person search in Knoxville, about 240 miles east of the traffic stop. Officials said the adults are believed to have trafficked the girl in commercial sex.
The girl was taken to a facility in Nashville to receive care and services.
Officials believe she was missing for about two days before she was found, a public information officer told McClatchy News.
The 21-year-old man and 19-year-old woman were arrested and face once count each of trafficking for commercial sex acts, investigators said.
Hickman County is about 60 miles southwest of Nashville.
This story was originally published February 27, 2023 at 10:52 AM with the headline "Missing 17-year-old found with suspected traffickers during traffic stop, TN cops say."
