Michigan State Police joining nationwide effort to raise awareness of human trafficking
(CBS DETROIT) — Michigan State Police motor carrier officers are teaming with law enforcement agencies across the nation and two nonprofit organizations to fight human trafficking.
From Jan. 13 to Jan. 17, the agency will work with the Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance, Truckers Against Trafficking and other groups to educate people about the signs of human trafficking.
"The goal of the week-long, nationwide initiative is to educate individuals in positions to observe human trafficking taking place, such as commercial motor vehicle drivers, public transportation companies, rest area attendants and truck stop employees, so they can alert law enforcement," Michigan State Police said in a release.
The agency says many people have misconceptions about what trafficking looks like.
"People are afraid they are going to go shopping, they're shopping by themselves, they come out, their doors are going to be zip tied together and they're going to get snatched up and wind up in another country and forced into sex slavery," police Sergeant Les Rochefort said. "That is not what I have seen ever, and the likelihood of that is very small."
Human trafficking red flags to look for include people who don't have control of their identity documents, are monitored by others, show signs of branding of a trafficker's name or bruising, or seeing a car in a predominantly male area, dropping women off and picking them up 15 to 20 minutes later, authorities say.
Michigan State Police first partnered with Truckers Against Trafficking in 2015.
To report suspected human trafficking, call the National Human Trafficking Resources Center at 888-373-7888 or text "BeFree" to 233733.