Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody unveils new human trafficking initiatives

The State of Florida is rolling out new tools and incentives in the fight against human trafficking.               

On Tuesday, Attorney General Ashley Moody unveiled a new phone line and a larger reward, hoping those with eyes and ears on the road will help save people being held against their will.

Moody speaking at the news conference.

Moody speaking at the news conference.

"They're going to blend in," said Jamie Bond, the communications director for Place of Hope, a non-profit that fights human trafficking. "They don't want to get caught because then you're taking away their lifeline." 

Bond stood with Moody as she announced the latest step in pulling off the disguises that traffickers use to move their victims to and from unlicensed, unsafe and even sexually exploitative workplaces. 

"We know that traffickers use our roadways, our interstates, to not only move victims, but they also try to pedal in their trade," said Moody.

The state is posting signs at 53 rest stops that show the number for Florida's trafficking hotline.

A sign showing the information to call Florida's trafficking hotline.

A sign showing the information to call Florida's trafficking hotline.

The reward for information leading to an arrest is increasing to $7,500. 

Further, all tips can now remain anonymous. 

"No piece of information is too small," said Moody. "And if it ends up being nothing, that is not a problem. We want more tips."

In 2023, troopers in Gainesville pulled over a van on I-75 filled with ten men likely headed to fields to do backbreaking labor.

In May of that year, they found seven migrants in a vehicle near Brooksville

Some of the migrants found near Brooksville.

Some of the migrants found near Brooksville.

In April, they found twenty in an F-350 near Tampa.

Some of the 20 migrants found near Tampa.

Some of the 20 migrants found near Tampa.

"There are instances where truck drivers have reported their cab has been knocked on in the middle of the night, and something seemed amiss, and they reported that," said Moody. "If someone is looking to someone else to give them guidance on what to say if someone else has their identification documents." 

One tip could change or save a life. 

"If somebody looks like they don't have control of what they're able to say, they can't move about freely," said Moody. "They look like they're under somebody else's control, or someone is possibly exploiting or blackmailing them."

The Office of Statewide Prosecution has prosecuted 130 traffickers since 2019.               

The state has trained more than a hundred workers in the gaming and transportation industries to spot trafficking.

The number to call is 855-FLA-SAFE.

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