Kentucky law enforcement rescued 21 human trafficking victims, including two juveniles, and arrested 46 people as part of a 12-state crackdown last Sunday, state leaders announced Wednesday.
Operation United Front was the creation of the Missouri attorney general’s office and the Missouri State Highway Patrol. But of the participating states, Kentucky by far had the most rescues and arrests, according to data compiled by the state of Missouri.
“There are parents who can sleep better tonight knowing that some predator is not trying to exploit their child,” Attorney General Daniel Cameron said at a state Capitol news conference. “And teenagers can go online with a little more confidence that they won’t be harassed in a chatroom.”
“Simply put, because of these arrests, made during this operation, there are fewer traffickers preying on our families and our communities,” Cameron said.
Kentucky’s four operations focused on Northern Kentucky, Elizabethtown, Bowling Green and McCracken County, Gov. Andy Beshear told reporters. Twenty-nine agencies assisted, including Cameron’s office, local and state police and the U.S. Secret Service.
Kentucky State Police said they went undercover, either to pose as customers and arrange “dates” with trafficking victims or to pose as trafficking victims in order to draw out customers. Victims later were provided with food, medical care and other necessary services, Cameron said.
Detective Rugina Lunce, who runs the state police task force on human trafficking, gave a few details about the operations.
The Northern Kentucky team uncovered 17 victims, including the two juveniles, Lunce said. The Bowling Green team served a search warrant on “an illicit massage parlor,” she said. The McCracken County team focused on Internet crimes against children.
Court records show that many of the arrests resulted from a sting operation run by the Boone County Sheriff’s Department at the Comfort Suites hotel near the Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport.
Men, generally from across the Ohio River in the Cincinnati metro area, responded to online ads offering sex in exchange for cash, usually around $100, only to find deputies waiting for them inside the hotel room, according to court records. Each was charged with a misdemeanor count of soliciting prostitution in Boone District Court.
“There were so many success stories during this operation,” Cameron said. “For example, one of our detectives was involved in an undercover sting that led to the arrest of a police officer in Maryland Heights, Mo., for online enticement of a minor. This is a big deal.”
From 2007 to 2019, the National Human Trafficking Hotline (1-888-373-7888) reports receiving 2,829 contacts from Kentucky and cataloging 701 cases. Top trafficking venues identified in Kentucky include private residences, massage parlors or spas, hotels and online advertising, according to the hotline.
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