Sex trafficking survivor advocates for child victims as more parents are accused of exploiting their kids
TAMPA, Fla. - Familial trafficking is an alarming trend that’s growing in many areas, including Hillsborough County, and it has law enforcement and advocates sounding the alarm on child sex crimes.
Essentially, it’s children being exploited or trafficked by their own parents, usually for money or drugs, and experts say it’s happening more than you think.
Natasha Nascimento runs Redefining Refuge, a program aimed at helping child trafficking survivors who have been rescued.
It provides many services, including counseling, treatment, and finding them a safe place to stay. Nascimento says more and more cases involve parents using their kids as sex commodities.
"It’s more common for us to get cases where children are being exploited in that way by a parent or caregiver than for us to get pimp control trafficking cases," she explained.
Earlier this week, Marquette James and the mother of his children, Alyson Marquette, were charged with human trafficking.
Marquette James and Alyson Marquette in a Tampa courtroom.
Department of Homeland Security special agent Mike Saclarides said James planned to use his own children as future targets.
"There are also reports that Mr. James was waiting for his daughter’s 18th birthday to sell her virginity," he testified.
No one understands that ultimate betrayal like Kim Figueroa. She’s a survivor of human trafficking,
"Really, every form of abuse you can imagine I started experiencing by the age of five years old," said Figueroa.
Redefining Refuge is a program aimed at helping child trafficking survivors
She says first it was child molestation, then she suffered more neglect and abuse in a broken foster care system. She ended up being trafficked for years until she was finally able to escape.
Today, she is still healing and now is an advocate for other child survivors of sex trafficking. She says there is no greater impact than survivor to survivor rapport.
"It is my job to meet them and tell them I’m here to hold your hand every step of the way to ensure you receive, not only the justice that you deserve, but the services that are required to heal," she said.
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