Human Trafficking in Wellington County

11/14/2023

The entered into a human trafficking and intimate partner violence investigation following a call for service in Palmerston. As a result, a 52 yo from Scarborough is facing several human trafficking related charges and an upcoming court date. ^JU

09/30/2022

Thank you to all of you who participated in the Silent Auction for the campaign organized by Angela Baltkois of Big Rig Wraps at our 5th annual Bridging the Barriers conference.
Because of your great generosity a total of $1,553.00 was raised on the day!
Angela has continued to receive donations for the auction even after our event.
So we will be holding an online silent auction, all of the proceeds will be going to the campaign. The auction will run until the 7th Oct.
You can go to
https://app.galabid.com/knowhumantrafficking/items
and register to bid.
All the cost for shipping the items will be paid by the winning bidders.
We would like to thank you in advance and ask that you share the link above so that we can have another great auction.
From all of us at the Women's Trucking Federation of Canada we thank you for your support!

07/13/2022

Kudos to Ontario Provincial Police & partnering agencies for this successful outcome. HT is still happening far too often. Learn about this crime and how to prevent it! www.htincw.com

06/29/2022

Another positive outcome on a high profile Human Trafficking case. Here's to more justice for victims!
Guelph-Wellington Women in Crisis Victim Services Wellington Crime Stoppers Guelph Wellington

Fallen R&B superstar R. Kelly was sentenced to 30 years in prison Wednesday for using his fame to subject young fans - some just children - to systematic s*xual abuse.

06/28/2022

Encouraging news that this high-profile Human Trafficking case has had a resolution.
Human Trafficking takes place locally, regionally and globally.
https://www.ctvnews.ca/world/ghislaine-maxwell-sentenced-to-20-years-in-prison-1.5965944?cid=sm%3Atrueanthem%3Actvnews%3Apost&utm_campaign=trueAnthem%3A%20New%20Content%20(Feed)&utm_medium=trueAnthem&utm_source=facebook&fbclid=IwAR14-EjKSYxZKbXaw-EeQuIH2TsB4OmPANhPm-qvuexMs1rKeoMdVjtA3zA

Ghislaine Maxwell, the jet-setting socialite who once consorted with royals, presidents and billionaires, was sentenced to 20 years in prison Tuesday for helping the wealthy financier Jeffrey Epstein s*xually abuse underage girls.

04/27/2022

Victims of Human Trafficking are NEVER alone. When you need support, reach out to Canadian Centre to End Human Trafficking or Victim Services Wellington. There is help.

If you are aware of someone who is responsible for Human Trafficking, report it to Ontario Provincial Police - West Region or provide an anonymous Tip to Crime Stoppers Guelph Wellington

often make their victims feel that no one else cares about them. They establish a trauma bond, making it very difficult for many to escape their situation.
We want them to know that they have options. We’re here to listen and to help, not to judge.

03/31/2022

We would like to thank everyone who followed along and helped us create awareness about these heinous crimes in our various Wellington communities. We realize this is not an easy topic to discuss; however, we encourage everyone to keep having about Human Trafficking. The only way these crimes end is if we raise awareness and know the signs and stages these traffickers employ to manipulate their victims.

Please continue to share the information we have collected and presented on our platforms. There is an abundance of information on our website www.HTinWC.com to help you start the conversation.

The sad reality is that the average age girls get lured into Human Trafficking is 13 years old. It breaks our heart to say that, yes, . It will take all of us to put an end to these crimes.
Keep your eyes peeled for future Human Trafficking presentations and campaigns, and please involve your children. Show them and explain how Predators use Social Media to lure children and teens into this despicable lifestyle.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y9PQW6OR1Yk

The Ontario Provincial Police and Crime Stoppers Guelph Wellington often do presentations for both parents and their children on Human Trafficking. To learn more about these presentations, visit www.HTinWC.com.

Thank you for your time and , and remember .

WATCH WITH CARE - REFERENCES TO SEXUAL ASSAULT, DRUG USE, MENTAL HEALTH AND SUICIDEThe partnership between Crime Stoppers Guelph Wellington, Victim S...

03/30/2022

Human Trafficking is no longer subjected to meeting people in public. Human Traffickers are now able to go into your house without even having to leave theirs. The internet has become the key resource for grooming.

When traffickers are utilizing the internet /social media platforms to groom children and teenagers, different tactics they will use are:

1. Utilize a teen's desire for romance and/or friendship
2. Develop trust and confidentiality, then manipulate a child by sympathizing with the child’s problems and insecurities.
3. Support the emotions and ideas of the child.
4. Exploit the child’s natural s*xual curiosities.
5. Gradually introduce s*x into conversations or expose them to po*******hy to make them feel more comfortable talking about s*x.
6. Constantly sending the child compliments through online messages, sending gifts, investing time and money.
7. Cultivate an online relationship that is romantic, controlling, and manipulates the child into being entirely reliant on the trafficker.
8. Create distance between the child’s family and friends.
9. Threaten the child with po*******hy showcasing the victim to blackmail them into silence.

If you would like to learn more about the signs of Human Trafficking, we encourage you to visit our website www.HTinWC.com.

03/29/2022

Some clear warning signs a victim of human trafficking may demonstrate are:

• Appears to be controlled by someone else, escorted everywhere, constantly being watched.
• Shows visible signs of branding. This could be done through tattoos or scarring.
• Shows signs of starvation, says they are hungry and aren’t eating enough.
• Doesn’t speak for themselves, are told they aren’t allowed to speak for themselves.
• Doesn't have a passport or other ID.
• Isn't familiar with the community they live or work in.
• Is frequently moving or being moved, doesn’t have a specific place where they live and sleep.
• Has visible injuries or bruises from physical abuse, bruising, cuts, markings, burns, etc.
• Expresses fear/intimidation through facial expressions and body language.



If you would like to learn more about the signs of Human Trafficking, we encourage you to visit our website www.HTinWC.com.

03/28/2022

Our partners from Crime Stoppers Guelph Wellington , Ontario Provincial Police - West Region and Victim Services Wellington have come together to paint a picture of how Human Trafficking looks in Wellington County. This is really how Human Trafficking is conducted in our communities.

We ask that you take some time today to watch this video and share it with friends and family. By learning the signs and stages of Human Trafficking, we can begin to work together to build safer communities.

In this video, the trafficker utilizes the “boyfriending” tactic, and his girlfriend acts as a recruiter.

“Boyfriending” is when a trafficker manipulates their victim into thinking they’re in a relationship with them to win their trust and loyalty. If you’re not sure that your relationship is legitimate, look for signs of exploitation and abuse or an unhealthy relationship.

Common tactic traffickers will often utilize using victims who are already being trafficked to recruit other victims. They will use the victims to contact younger women, sometimes even friends and family, and introduce them to the trafficker. This makes the initial victim feel more important to the trafficker and feel as though they are less of a "worker" and more of a girlfriend once again. This helps regain trust with the initial victim while also bringing in new workers.

We want to send a big thank you to Tivoli Films Inc. for their work on this wonderful video.

If you would like to learn more about Human Trafficking in Wellington County, visit our website www.HTinWC.com.

03/25/2022

There are many reasons people get manipulated into the grim world of . Traffickers will use a variety of forms of abuse to control the victim and hold power over their lives. A few different signs of abuse are:

Coercion and Threats:
• Threatens to harm family/friends
• Threatens to expose pictures or videos to shame the victim
• Threatens to report the person to police or in some cases immigration

Intimidation:
• Harms the victims pets, sometimes even their children
• Displays or uses weapons
• Destroys property
• Lies about police involvement, threatens to kill them if they call the police

Emotional Abuse:
• Humiliates the victim in front of peers and associates
• Calls names
• Plays mind games
• Makes the victim feel guilty/ blames them for the situation they are in
• Convinces the victim they are the only one who truly loves and cares for them
Isolation:
• Keeps the victim confined
• Accompanies the victim everywhere they go
• Convinces the victim to distrust the police, friends, and family
• Constantly moves victim to different locations
• Will deny the victim access to their phone
• Will forbid victim from communicating with friends and family

Physical Abuse:
• Will physically harm the victim
• Burns, tattoos, brands the victim
• Will use torture tactics
• Force drug use as a way of controlling the victim
Sexual Abuse:
• Uses s*xual assault as a form of punishment/control
• Forces victim to have s*x multiple times a day with strangers for money
• Normalizes s*xual violence and s*x trafficking
• Uses s*x for financial gain

Economic Abuse:
• Creates debts that can never be repaid
• Takes all the money the victim earns
• Limits the victim to a small daily/weekly allowance
• Forbids the victims to access to bank accounts and finances

Denying & Forcing Blame:
• Makes light of abuse and exploitation
• Denies that what is being done is illegal and exploitative
• Blames the victim for being in a s*x trafficking situation

03/24/2022

Toronto police have arrested and charged a local man following a human trafficking investigation launched in January.

According to police, a woman met a person and began a relationship with them. The person allegedly trafficked the woman within the Toronto s*x trade and withheld the money she made.
It is further alleged the person used violence against the woman in an attempt to exercise control over her.

https://www.cp24.com/news/toronto-police-arrest-and-charge-local-man-accused-of-human-trafficking-killing-animals-1.5825022

This trafficker employed the “boyfriending” technique. The trafficker at the beginning may give the victim love and affection, gifts, and promise of marriage and a future together. Then quickly pulls away and starts giving mixed messages.

• The trafficker seems to be collecting personal information about the victim's dreams and aspirations, family, what they love and care about the most.

• They may engage in physical intimacy and ask if they can take pictures or record these encounters. This is often used for blackmail later on, the victim may not know they were being recorded at the time.

• The trafficker may introduce the victim to illicit drugs under the excuse of loosening up, having fun, and partying.

• Toys with the victim's emotions, reducing information and compliments. Begins behaving unpredictably to cause the victim to question the relationship

• Has s*x with the victim then does something for them (take shopping, give money, etc.) to make s*x have a price.

Visit www.HTinWC.com for more information on regarding the signs and stages of these crimes, along with an assortment of additional information.

Toronto police have arrested and charged a local man following a human trafficking investigation launched in January.