More than 50 potential human trafficking victims were assisted
I always like to see the results of Operation Ohio Knows. This is the third annual event that creates a sting operation across the state, going after those trying to buy sex. This year had the largest results ever.
Simultaneous with the operation, 10 minors reported as missing were picked up by the U.S. Marshals Service.
According to Karen Kader‘s report on WKSU.org:
Republican Attorney General Dave Yost said 51 potential human trafficking victims were helped in and 161 men were arrested in 17 communities, including Elyria City Councilmember Mark Jessie, a firefighter, a teacher and a professor.
“We actually arrested a pilot who makes over $200,000 but not only was purchasing sex, but he haggled and got the price down to $15. We also arrested a guy with a two-year-old in the car,” Yost said at a press conference announcing the results of the sting.
Three men arrested were trying to buy sex from someone they thought was a minor.
https://www.wksu.org/government-politics/2021-10-05/largest-human-trafficking-sting-in-ohio-history-nets-161-arrests
Yost explained that this year, the emphasis was more on prosecuting the “johns” than those who were selling sex. “Anybody in Ohio, anybody anywhere, who purchases sex is assuming the risk that they’re complicit in human trafficking and that means that it’s not a private matter between two consenting humans but is a matter for all of our society if we’re interested in justice, if we’re interested in the basic dignity of human beings.”
