In partnership with two federal law enforcement agencies, the Virginia State Police (VSP) is conducting a three-day sweep to combat human trafficking on the I-95 corridor.
“U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Washington, D.C. partnered with the Virginia State Police and the Virginia Trucking Association in order to detect, deter, and raise awareness of the growing problem of human trafficking,” said an ICE press release. “During mid-April, they will conduct Operation Safe Passage, a high‐visibility, human trafficking prevention and public outreach initiative.”
Operation safe passage began on April 18 and will continue through April 20.
Virginia Secretary of Public Safety and Homeland Security Bob Mosier praised the effort.
“Preventing human trafficking and providing support to its victims have been a priority of Governor [Glenn] Youngkin and his administration since stepping into office in January,” he said. “I am extremely pleased to see the Virginia State Police taking an aggressive and active stance toward addressing what has become a global pandemic. Virginia has no tolerance for the exploitation of any human being, and is committed to apprehending, prosecuting and bringing to justice anyone associated with this crime.”
I-95 and many of America’s other interstates – particularly at state-run rest areas and truck stops – have long been hotbeds for human trafficking, according to the Human Trafficking Hotline’s website.
These locations, according to the organization, are ideal locations for human traffickers to conduct their businesses.
“While sex trafficking occurs at state-operated rest areas and welcome centers, it is most often prevalent in commercially operated truck stops where truckers are offered more privacy and access to more amenities such as dining, lodging, and entertainment,” the site says. “Moreover, law enforcement is not as present in these locations unless responding to complaints or incidents.”
The group says that oftentimes, local businesses near the interstate are fronts for human traffickers.
“With the presence of a commercial-front brothel or fake massage business, customers can also be from the local communities near where the truck stops are located,” according to the site.
While truckers can often be customers in the human trafficking business, they can also often be assets to law enforcement. Virginia State Police Superintendent Col. Gary T. Settle is hoping the latter will be the case during Operation Safe Passage.
“With tens of thousands of commercial trucks and buses traveling through and across Virginia on any given day, this statewide initiative has extensive, life‐saving potential,” he said in the ICE press release. “Commercial drivers can be our added eyes and ears when it comes to identifying the common indicators of human trafficking victims and perpetrators. This campaign is about putting an end to a very serious crime that intentionally preys on vulnerable adult and juvenile populations.”
A nonprofit called Truckers Against Trafficking works to support law enforcement and end the practice.
According to that organization’s website, there are an estimated 40 million victims of human trafficking worldwide.
While illegal, human trafficking is a booming business. Traffickers recruit out of our schools, online, in shopping malls, as well as the streets and other locations,” its website says. “A large percentage of the people trafficked are women and children. Many of them are used in the sex industry. They are the prostituted people on the street and in private homes, and in legitimate businesses such as restaurants, truck stops and motels. They need to be identified and recovered.”
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Pete D’Abrosca is a reporter at The Virginia Star and The Star News Network. Follow Pete on Twitter. Email tips to [email protected].
Photo “Virginia State Police” by Virginia State Police. Background Photo “Department of Homeland Security” by Department of Homeland Security.
