Child Trafficking: a Troubling Issue
There are now questions being raised by the girl’s family about why more wasn’t done to get her home sooner after eight people were jailed in Oklahoma City last month for alleged child trafficking of a 15-year-old Texas girl at a Dallas Mavericks game.
At the American Airlines Center in Dallas on April 8, the adolescent went to use the restroom with her father and never returned, according to a statement from her family’s attorney, Zeke Fortenberry of the Fortenberry Firm, PLLC said in a release, obtained by Fox News. Police searched for her in an Extended Stay America motel in Oklahoma City, almost 200 miles away, for ten days before finding her.
Police in Oklahoma City has nabbed seven people in connection with a trafficking investigation: Saniya Alexander, Melissa Wheeler, Chevaun Gibson, Kenneth Nelson, Sarah Hayes, Karen Gonzales, Thalia Gibson, and Steven Hill.
As a family, we are grateful for the efforts of the Oklahoma City Police Department and our daughter’s recovery,” the girl’s mother stated in a statement on May 5. In the 11 days that my daughter was kidnapped, she was subjected to harrowing experiences that I can only imagine. I am grateful that she is safe as we continue to work toward her recovery.”
As soon as the girl failed to return to her seat, her father contacted arena security and Dallas police, Fortenberry said.
The Texas Counter-Trafficking Initiative (TXCTI) – a nonprofit organization that tracked down naked photographs of the girl on a prostitution website — helped the family locate the kid.
As a result of Texas Family Code rules, which state that missing adolescents are considered runaways “unless there are circumstances which appear as involuntary such as a kidnapping or abduction,” the Dallas Police Department did not investigate the matter.
Because of this, the girl’s family is demanding answers about why police and authorities at the American Airlines Center in Dallas didn’t do more to assist find her, and why Extended Stay America permitted an unregistered sexual offender to rent rooms.
“The victim was repeatedly let down by the institutions and organizations at play in this instance. At the Mavericks game, she should have avoided making eye contact with the man. In a statement to Fox, Fortenberry said that the Dallas Police Department “should have responded quickly to investigate leads and identify the minor before she was trafficked to Oklahoma.”
To put money ahead of people, the Extended Stay America motel in Oklahoma City turned a blind eye to the sexual exploitation taking place right in front of them. There will be no going back for this victim. To ensure that this doesn’t happen to another kid, we intend to hold those involved accountable and effect change within these institutions.
Owner of the Mavericks and “Shark Tank” participant Mark Cuban has yet to comment on the kidnapping of the adolescent.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
What causes child trafficking?
One of the key causes of child trafficking is poverty. Sometimes, struggling families are forced to leave their kids behind and turn them over to human traffickers. In addition, poverty significantly increases the number of orphans and street children.
Which is the most common form of child trafficking?
Begging is a typical tactic used by traffickers to obtain funds and divert them from their already deprived captives. Traffickers compel children under the age of 18 to go out and beg.
What is the meaning of children trafficking?
Trafficking occurs when kids and teens are fooled, coerced, or convinced to leave their families, moved, or transported, then exploited, made to work, or sold. Sexual exploitation is the purpose of child trafficking.
What methods do human traffickers use?
The most prevalent control techniques used by traffickers are separation from friends and family, physical and mental abuse, threats, and economic abuse. In order to exert control, they promise to take care of their target's needs.