Her name is Leslie (an anonymous name). She’s married with a young daughter. She could be your neighbor, your friend, your in-law.
And she is being trafficked by her husband.
(These, and other experiences of sex trafficking victims mentioned in this article are loosely drawn from multiple anonymous sources across the country, and do not refer to any existing individuals, or individuals known to us.)
Sex trafficking: it happens all day, every day, all over the country, and all over the world–and it’s happening in Los Banos.
Yes, Los Banos.
Beneath our busy, relatively well-ordered, and productive city life lies a dark, tragic, and even life-threatening world, hidden in plain sight.
We expect Westside Express readers will be as shocked as we were to learn the breathtaking number of sex trafficking scenes that play out daily in the city.
“One of the hardest parts of our job is just the sheer volume of cases we have,” an investigator with the Los Banos Police Department recently told The Westside Express. “We are sometimes working on 100 cases at a time.”
(The LBPD investigator’s comments, the officer’s name or identity, and that of other investigators referenced in this article, were given confidentially and are used anonymously here in the interest of privacy and to protect the safety and welfare of officers and victims alike. Our thanks to the department for their cooperation in this article.)
The 100-plus active sex trafficking cases Los Banos officers may be working on at any given time represents just the tip of the iceberg–in what one regional law officer with extensive experience investigating sex trafficking, Nevada City Chief of Police and former Madera Police Department officer Dan Foss, calls the “river” of cases now confronting area law enforcement.
Another member of the Los Banos police department’s investigative team told us they are charged with routinely reviewing “between 400-500 cases that come in.” After that review, the officer then refers the cases out to patrol to actively pursue.
Even then, patrol officers having cases assigned to them starts yet another phase in the long-term battle to pursue perpetrators and aid victims of trafficking.
“We’re also placing offenders in custody, and making sure all the paperwork gets done,” another investigator told us.
Taking care of the many levels of police work in prosecuting offenders is ongoing, the officer noted, but added administrative work inevitably extends into the personal as well. “We’re also occupied dealing with our interpersonal relationships with the victims,” the officer explained.
Another investigator reiterated constraints on their time is a continuing challenge.
“Officially, we work 8-5 Monday through Friday,” the officer said, “and it’s just not enough. So we frequently come in early.”
Today’s total immersion in the internet in most people’s daily lives has actually helped police department investigators pursue suspected trafficking offenders, officers reported.
Pursuing offenders “involves working with our team’s tech expert,” investigators told us, “analyzing digital evidence and just staying on top of it all.”
The extensive technical capabilities available to officers working to solve trafficking crimes enables them to access online communications an offender may be using, officers reported.
“The internet is used a lot, and works toward helping identify the offender,” an investigator said.
“For instance, we can find the associated hard drive, identify the data source and what kind of data encryption there is,” one investigator told us. “We can also identify user names.” Added to local resources, the officer noted regional programs help local officers extend their technical reach.
“We’re also able to make use of The Sacramento Valley Hi-Tech Task Force,” the officer said.
That’s the paperwork, the police protocols, the privacy requirements, the risks on patrol, all of it–that officers stepping into this maelstrom of one of the darkest realms of human nature deal with on a daily basis.
Police officers are, after all, human beings. And at the end of the day, how Los Banos officers cope with all they see and experience in their work as peacekeepers is a less-discussed matter.
“Because of the nature of the work, everybody goes through some things,” one investigator confided.
“In these kinds of cases, such as where there’s child sexual abuse, it gets challenging, when we have to review photos involving that,” they continued.
“For investigators who have children, it’s pretty hard with things like viewing videos.”
When the weight of performing their duty to investigate trafficking crimes gets too heavy, officers told us they know they can reach out and not be judged.
“There are counselors available for officers who want to work through things,” an investigator revealed, adding their group’s cohesion helps all the team stay grounded.
“Things come up in this work, like managing these feelings, how to handle it,” the officer said. Ultimately, they affirmed, each member looks to rely on the confidence of fellow officers involved in the same work.
“We’re a tight-knit team,” an officer declared. “We can step in.”
Beyond Our City: The Troubling National Picture
Our first mention in this story–of a victim of sex trafficking enacted by a husband or live-in boyfriend–is only one scenario among many.
Offenders of many types also target many kinds of potential victims–all races, economic classes, all ages, all political persuasions, every national origin, and all religious inclinations, are involved; and neighbors, club-goers, pastors, family friends, friends of friends, can all be offenders–the list goes on.
That being said, quality, long-time research has shown one statistical fact stands out above all others: Almost all victims of sex trafficking knew their abusers and trusted them.
The vast majority of victims are women and children.
The Polaris Project, a national 501(c)(3), in August 2022 reported that between Jan. 2020 and Aug. 2022 as many as 44 percent of victims were trafficked by family members; with 39 percent being similarly victimized by intimate partners.
(See: https://polarisproject.org/love-and-trafficking/)
The U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) recently declared that “Women and girls are disproportionately affected by forced labor, accounting for 99% of victims in the commercial sex industry.”
(See: https://www.cbp.gov/border-security/human-trafficking)
Offenders invariably look for vulnerable individuals to groom and recruit into the sex trafficking world–those living in poverty, others with poor self-esteem or a bad home life, a spouse over whom they have financial or emotional control or just the young and naive–offering them money, feigned affection, food or a way to a new life.
Many offenders also are older than the victims or have power over them.
The crimes often take place in hidden places: in the home or at a work site, for instance.
Here are a few signs a victim of trafficking may display, among many more:
Having poor hygiene or poor grooming
Lacking in necessities like food or appropriate clothing
Showing a tendency to avoid socializing or having contact with family
Showing signs of abuse, such as bruises or physical wounds
Showing submissive behavior around other people
Is frequently seen with older men whom they seem to fear
What You Can Do to Help
For our readers who are moved to help deter the crime of sex trafficking or help victims: Say something. It’s not “police business.” It’s everybody’s.
Speak privately to the person you think may be a victim. Offer to help get them in touch with assistance.
Here are other safe resources you can access to report suspected sex trafficking activity:
Report suspected sex trafficking crime or activity to the Los Banos Police Department–you can do so anonymously here: https://losbanos.org/report/.
Call the National Human Trafficking Hotline at 888-373-7888.
Email the U.S. Department of Transportation’s sex trafficking prevention arm at trafficking@dot.gov.
Email the Department of Homeland Security at: bluecampaign@hq.dhs.gov
Report what you’ve seen, even if you think you might be wrong.
You won’t be faulted for trying, and if you’re right, you might save a life.
