Friday, March 11, 2005 | 10:10 a.m.
Local agencies and groups that are a part of the Department of Health and Human Services Rescue and Restore Coalition:
A new coalition of local agencies is hoping to find the victims of human traffickers and free them from a life of forced labor and prostitution.
The Department of Health and Human Services on Tuesday is set to announce Las Vegas as the newest site for a branch of its national Rescue and Restore Coalition.
Human trafficking, a 21st century form of slavery, is a crime that is especially difficult to root out, said Steve Wagner, the director of Health and Human Services Trafficking in Persons Program. Its victims don't usually come forward because they are so afraid of the people who control their lives, Wagner said.
"Human trafficking is a lot like child abuse in that it is a rarely reported crime because of fear," Wagner said. "We want to educate local agencies and care providers about the problem and create a different avenue for victims to come forward other than law enforcement."
Wagner said that the coalition, made up of about 20 local groups and agencies including the Clark County Health District, Nevada Child Seekers and the Salvation Army, will work with the federal law enforcement task force on human trafficking established in Las Vegas in September.
Las Vegas is the 11th U.S. city where a Rescue and Restore Coalition has been instituted, Wagner said.
The government estimates that between 800,000 and 900,000 victims are trafficked annually across international borders, and that between 14,500 to 17,500 people are trafficked to the U.S. every year.
"In Las Vegas we have only been able to document three victims since the Trafficking Victim Protection Act passed in 2000, but it's our suspicion that trafficking is a serious problem in Las Vegas," Wagner said. "We're finding that large cities with ethnic populations and tourism are among the places that have high concentrations of trafficking."
"I have no doubt that once people are educated about the problem we'll find more victims and be able to help them."
The 2000 federal law makes it possible for the victims who were brought into the country for sex or other reasons to become residents and citizens if they cooperate with authorities. The law also provides them the paperwork they need to obtain legal jobs and social services and offers them protection from trafficking rings.
Since 2001 the U.S. attorney's office has brought charges in four human trafficking cases in Las Vegas, but Dan Bogden, U.S. attorney for Nevada, has said there are more cases out there.
Trafficking in people involves the use of force, fraud or coercion to compel people to engage in prostitution or sex entertainment, or to work in sweat shops as domestic labor, Bogden said.
Historically, human trafficking in Las Vegas has centered around the sex industry, said Ellen Knowlton, FBI special agent in charge of the Las Vegas FBI office.
Las Vegas also has a booming construction industry, which has been an outlet for trafficking of immigrant workers in other cities.
Wagner said that there are some key clues to identifying a victim of human trafficking.
"The victims are always fearful of speaking to outsiders, or someone not involved in trafficking," Wagner said. "They will often be shadowed by a trafficker, speak little or no English and from another country."
Other signs include physical abuse and battery and untreated illnesses from a lack of medical attention.
Citizens can report suspected incidents of human trafficking to the FBI at 385-1281 or to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement at 388-6818.
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