German Police Shut Down Major Darknet Child Sex Abuse Platform - This is Not the Spencer Tracy Mickey Rooney's "Boystown"

After months of investigation, German police have busted the "Boystown" child sex abuse platform with over 400,000 members. Four German men have been arrested.

Authorities in Germany managed to take down one of the world's biggest child sex abuse platforms following a large-scale investigation which led to several arrests in mid-April, a police statement confirmed on Monday.

The platform "Boystown" was active since at least June 2019 and had a membership of over 400,000. It was only accessible via the so-called darknet.

Four German citizens between the ages of 40 and 64 were detained in relation to the case, three on suspicion of working as administrators for the platform — one of whom was arrested in Paraguay. Another man was taken in under suspicion of being a registered member and the platform's most active user, having contributed more than 3,500 posts.

read more here

 

San Francisco Police Make Human Trafficking Arrest

SAN FRANCISCO (BCN) - Police have arrested a 20-year-old man after he allegedly participated in the kidnapping of 19-year-old woman in San Francisco's Mission District last week, police said Friday.

On April 8, around 1:30 a.m. a group of suspects allegedly forced the victim into a vehicle near 20th and Shotwell streets, according to police.

The suspects then took the victim to Santa Clara County, where she managed to escape and contacted authorities a short while later.

More from San Francisco FoxNews2KTVU

Police Arrest Sacramento Man Suspected Of Human Trafficking With Victims As Young As 14

By Barbara Harvey
bharvey@sacbee.com

March 31, 2018 04:35 PM

Updated March 31, 2018 04:46 PM

A Sacramento man was arrested on charges of human trafficking in Ventura County last week after investigators said he forced multiple victims – including minors from the Sacramento area – to engage in prostitution.

Read more here: http://www.sacbee.com/news/local/crime/article207574189.html#storylink=cpy

 

 

James Powell, 31, was arrested on suspicion of human trafficking after an investigation into the whereabouts of a missing Citrus Heights teen led detectives to the discovery of several victims in the Camarillo area. Powell was booked into the Ventura County jail and his bail was set at $510,000. Ventura County Sheriff's Department

 

 More from SacramentoBee

Read more here: http://www.sacbee.com/news/local/crime/article207574189.html#storylink=cpy

Nxivm's Leader Charged With Sex-Trafficking

NEW YORK (AP) - The leader of a secretive group in upstate New York turned female followers into brainwashed "slaves" who were branded with his initials and coerced into having sex, authorities alleged on Monday in a criminal complaint charging him with sex-trafficking.

Keith Raniere, co-founder of the group called Nxivm, was arrested in Mexico and returned to Texas Monday, authorities said. He was to appear in court on Tuesday in Fort Worth on the charges filed by federal prosecutors in Brooklyn.

According to the complaint, Raniere-known within the group as "Vanguard"-oversaw a barbaric system in which women were told the best way to advance was to become a "slave" overseen by "masters." They also were expected to have sex with him and do menial chores for masters, and to keep the arrangement a secret or be publicly humiliated, the complaint says.

Elle reports

Rabbi With Prior Sex Crime Conviction Arrested In Underage Sex Trafficking Bust

EAST BRUNSWICK, N.J. — A rabbi with a prior conviction for sexually abusing a minor was one of three arrested for allegedly sex trafficking an underage prostitute, according to WPIX.

Rabbi Aryeh Goodman, 35, was arrested along with 18-year-old Gabriella Colon and 23-year-old Richard Ortiz by investigators from the Middlesex County Prosecutor’s Office, East Brunswick Police and Middlesex County Sheriff's Office.

More from Fox5 News

Man Charged With Human Trafficking In Anne Arundel County

LINTHICUM, Md. (AP) — A New York man is accused of assault and profiting off three women engaging in prostitution in Maryland.

Anne Arundel County police said in a release Monday that Vice Unit detectives conducting a prostitution sting arrested 34-year-old Ondray Lamar Pleasant on Feb. 22.

The detectives had made online contact with two women, who told them come to a hotel room where they found three women linked to prostitution activity. Pleasant was taken into custody at a nearby business.

More from Fox5 DC

2 Dc Men Charged With Human Trafficking Of Missing Juvenile Female In Md., Police Say

FREDERICK, Md. (ABC7) — 

Two D.C. men have been charged with human trafficking a juvenile female in Frederick, Maryland.

Abiathar Abraham Vance was charged with seven counts of human trafficking and C was charged with four counts of human trafficking, according to Frederick Police.

Investigators say the juvenile female was returned to her family.

The victim was found with Vance and Privado in the 400 block of South Jefferson Street.

More from Washington DC ABC7WJLA

Nine Nabbed In Merced Human Trafficking Sting, Police Say

January 31, 2018 05:18 PM 

 

A joint effort in Merced nabbed two alleged human traffickers and seven alleged johns in a recent prostitution sting, according to police.

Two Merced police units, the Disruptive Area Response Team and Gang Violence Suppression Unit, conducted undercover operations last Thursday, Friday and Saturday, police said in a news release. It was part of a statewide effort against human trafficking and prostitution.

Read more from Modesto

Read more here: http://www.modbee.com/news/article197763209.html#storylink=cpy

Former Schwartzeneger Advisor and 500+ Arrested In Statewide Human Trafficking Operation

Daniel Pellisier, a former advisor to Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, was arrested by the Citrus Heights Police Department as part of a human trafficking crackdown.

A man who once advised former Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger was one of four alleged "johns" arrested by police in Citrus Heights, Calif., as part of a statewide human trafficking crackdown.

Daniel Pellisier was arrested by the Citrus Heights Police Department, in Sacramento County, as part of Operation Reclaim and Rebuild, a three-day sweep led by the Los Angeles County Regional Human Trafficking Task Force. The crackdown led to more than 500 arrests, including 30 suspected traffickers and 178 alleged "johns."

Los Angeles Times has more

Third Suspect Arrested In Fayetteville Teen Sex Trafficking Case

FAYETTEVILLE, NC (WTVD) --

Detectives with the Fayetteville Police Department's Human Trafficking Unit have charged and arrested a third suspect in connection with a human trafficking investigation that began in September involving a 16-year-old victim.

 Ashley Skinner, 23, of the 3500 block of Ireland Drive, has been charged with felony promoting prostitution of a minor and felony conspiracy to commit human trafficking of a minor victim.

Skinner was taken to the Cumberland County Detention Center and is being held on a $10,000 secured bond.

A second suspect, Antonio T. McAllister, 33, of the 1900 block of Tryon Drive, was arrested October 11 and and charged with human trafficking a child victim, contributing to the delinquency of a juvenile, promoting prostitution of a minor, felony conspiracy to commit human trafficking of a minor, second-degree forcible rape, and assault on a female.

More from ABC11 News North Carolina

Human Sex Trafficking Happening in the Midlands' Backyard

Lexington, SC (WLTX) - Two sixteen-year-old girls were rescued by the Town of Lexington Police after being discovered during a sex-traffic bust at a motel.

Officials say the sting took place at a local hotel on November 21, with officers from the Lexington County Multi-Agency Narcotics Enforcement Team task force posing as “Johns” answering ads online.

Officers say Twenty-Nine-year-old Donnell Woodard and Twenty-Three-year-old India Cuyler are being charged with Sex Trafficking of a Minor.

CBS WLTX19 reports more

Man Charged With Human Trafficking In Waco Arrested On Similar Accusations In 2 Other States

A Texas man accused of similar offenses in at least two other states was arrested on a human trafficking charge Tuesday in Waco during an undercover operation by the McLennan County Sheriff's Office.

An undercover investigator made a prostitution arrangement with a woman and agreed to meet at a local motel, according to an arrest affidavit.

While conducting surveillance, investigators saw Donquell James Allen, 29, leave the room where the woman agreed to meet and go to a car in the parking lot, the affidavit states. A detective went to the motel room and met the woman who was detained for investigation purposes.

Waco Texas Herald-Tribune reports

Two Men Arrested On Human Trafficking Charges

Two men face charges after police said they ran an online sex trafficking operation.

One of the victims was able to escape Monday to get help and told officers she was being held against her will by Jarvis Anderson and Lawrence Jackson, along with another victim at a hotel.

Read more from KENS5 News San Antonio Texas

Human Trafficking Victim Turns In Alleged Abuser

Bradenton, Fla. -- Human trafficking, also known as modern-day slavery, is a crime some victims are too ashamed to report.

The numbers are staggering. According to dosomething.org between 14 and 17-thousand people are trafficked into the US each year, generating $32 billion dollars.

Recently, a Manatee County man was arrested on human trafficking. Deputies arrested 41-year-old Juan Cruz Jr. after one victim turned him in to deputies.

“Bravo to her to have the courage to come forward,” said Bradenton Police Chief Melanie Bevan. Florida Governor Rick Scott recently appointed Bevan to the Governor’s State Council on Human Trafficking.

Read more from CBS10 Tampa Sarasota Florida

Fbi Busts Sex Trafficking Ring Selling 3-Month-Old, 5-Year-Old Sister For $600

he FBI announced 84 underage victims and 120 traffickers were arrested from Oct. 12-15 as part of the annual human trafficking sting Operation Cross County XI.

The average age of the victims was 15 years old and the youngest was a three-month-old infant. 

“Unfortunately, the number of traffickers arrested—and the number of children recovered—reinforces why we need to continue to do this important work,” FBI Director Christopher Wray said in a statement.

One of the most egregious cases involved a three-month-old girl and her 5-year-old sister. A friend who was staying with the family offered to sell them both for sex to an undercover agent from FBI’s Denver office for $600.

Read more from FoxNews

Tennessee Human Trafficking Sting Leads To 11 Arrests

KINGSPORT, Tenn. (AP) - Eleven men in Tennessee - including a church youth leader and a coach - have been arrested as part of a human trafficking operation sting.

The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation announced in a statement Tuesday that the Kingsport-based anti-trafficking operation called "Operation Someone Like Me" took place July 31 through Aug. 3. The TBI partnered with several agencies, including the Kingsport Police Department and Homeland Securities Investigations, to conduct the operation.

Read more from Chattanooga Tennessee WRCBtv.com

JPSO: Rape Victim's Case Leads To Arrest Of Metairie Human Trafficking Suspect

METAIRIE, LA (WVUE) -
A Metairie man has been arrested for one count of first-degree rape and one count of false imprisonment, and the Jefferson Parish Sheriff's Office is urging anyone else who has been victimized to come forward.

On July 9, deputies were dispatched to the 2100 block of Manson Drive in Metairie in what was initially a medical call for a female with a leg injury sustained in a fall.  Deputies determined that the woman was trying to escape a physically abusive relationship, and that she had injured her leg while climbing out of a window to get away from 35-year-old Keston Mimmitt. Mimmitt was initially at the location, but left as the woman was being treated.

Read more from Fox8 Louisiana

Third Person Charged In Jessup Human Trafficking Case

Police: 16-year-old girl was forced into prostitution

JESSUP, Md. —

Howard County police have arrested a third person in connection with a human trafficking investigation involving a 16-year-old girl.

Jessica Lynn Smitherman, 31, of Laurel, was charged with human trafficking. Police said investigators believe that Smitherman conspired with Andre Lamar Russell, 28, of Laurel, and Heather Lynn Harding, 23, of Woodbine, in late May and early June to force the teen into prostitution at motels in Jessup.

More from WBALTV11

Boynton Beach Man Charged For Sex Trafficking, Producing Child Pornography, Enticing Minor

BOYNTON BEACH, Fla. - A Boynton Beach man was arrested Thursday after being federally charged for sex trafficking, producing child pornography and enticing a minor, according to the Boynton Beach Police Department.

Court records say 31-year-old Marco Vinicio Orrego prostituted a 16-year-old girl using the website Backpage.com. He provided her transportation and a hotel for the illicit activities, taking all of the proceeds to himself.

WPTV 5 West Palm Beach Florida reports

Fugitive Wanted For Sex Trafficking, Child Porn Is Arrested In Golden

U.S. marshals and Golden police arrested a fugitive wanted in Virginia for commercial sex trafficking, production of child pornography and other felonies.

A Russell County, Va., grand jury indicted Angela Dowell-Wilson, 32, on multiple charges on Nov. 24, 2016, according to the the U.S. Marshals Service. Investigators learned that Dowell-Wilson could be living in the Denver area and notified the Marshals Service.

Read more from the Denver Post