Human Trafficking

Learn what human trafficking is, the Virginia laws related to human trafficking, how and where human traffickers operate, how to recognize and report the signs of human trafficking, resources for victims, and how to stay safe from human trafficking.

What is human trafficking?

Though details vary depending on state law, this definition from the U.S. National Human Trafficking Hotline is a good starting point:

“U.S. law defines human trafficking as the use of force, fraud, or coercion to compel a person into commercial sex acts or labor or services against his or her will. The one exception involves minors and commercial sex. Inducing a minor into commercial sex is considered human trafficking regardless of the presence of force, fraud or coercion.”
https://humantraffickinghotline.org/en/human-trafficking

Human trafficking is usually broken into labor trafficking and commercial sex trafficking.

According to the Virginia Office of the Attorney General, these elements are usually present for a situation to be classified as human trafficking:

the recruitment, harboring, transportation, provision, or obtaining
of a person for the purposes of commercial sex acts or labor services,
often through the use of force, fraud or coercion. In some situations, the use of force, fraud, or coercion are factors that create a felony.

Force includes physical restraints, physical harm/assault and sexual assault.
Fraud includes the use of false promises, manipulation, lies, hidden identity, false agreements, and/or changes over time in the nature of relationships.
Coercion is the practice of persuading someone to do something by using force or threat.

How common is human trafficking?

In 2023, the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children received more than 18,400 reports of possible child sex trafficking (https://www.missingkids.org/theissues/trafficking)
In 2022, the VA Department of State Police reported 73 crime counts of human trafficking per a population of 100,000 (https://rga.lis.virginia.gov/Published/2023/RD259/PDF)
In 2021, 10,359 situations of human trafficking were reported to the U.S. National Human Trafficking Hotline involving 16,554 individual victims; this is likely only a fraction of the actual problem. (https://polarisproject.org/myths-facts-and-statistics/)

Which Virginia laws address human trafficking?

Commercial Sex Trafficking – Code of Virginia § 18.2-357.1 states that any person who:

with the intent to receive money or other valuable thing or to assist another in receiving money or other valuable thing from the earnings of a person from prostitution or unlawful sexual intercourse in violation of § 18.2-346,
solicits, invites, recruits, encourages, or otherwise causes or attempts to cause a person to violate § 18.2-346 is guilty of a Class 5 felony.
Any person who violates subsection A through the use of force, intimidation, or deception is guilty of a Class 4 felony.
Any adult who violates subsection A with a person under 18 years of age is guilty of a Class 3 felony.

A number of additional laws (such as Code of Virginia § 18.2-355, § 18.2-349, and § 18.2-59.1) address sex trafficking in general and also target specific actions associated with trafficking to penalize those who engage in it. These include laws that penalize soliciting for trafficking or profiting from it; using a vehicle to promote prostitution; and engaging in sexting or sextortion (see more information on these below), which traffickers often use as tools. Penalties can range from a Class 1 misdemeanor to a Class 3 felony, and are more severe when the victim is a minor.

Labor Trafficking – Code of Virginia § 18.2-47(B)-(C) states:

Any person who, by force, intimidation or deception, and without legal justification or excuse, obtains the labor or services of another person, or seizes, takes, transports, detains or secretes another person or threatens to do so, with the intent to subject him to forced labor or services, will be found guilty of “abduction.”
A person who commits an abduction of a minor is guilty of a Class 2 felony, except as provided in part (D). A person who commits abduction for which no punishment is stated is guilty of Class 5 felony.

Trafficking often involves other criminal activities such as sextortion, use of force, gang activities, kidnapping, etc. that can be prosecuted under other laws as well.

How do human traffickers operate?

Who are the traffickers?

Anyone can be a trafficker. Traffickers of minors include the following, but are not limited to:

unrelated individuals who develop a relationship with the minor
buyers who offer money/food/shelter in exchange for sexual/labor exploitation
parents, family members

(See more at https://www.missingkids.org/theissues/trafficking)

If drugs and/or gangs are present, there is almost always a connection to human trafficking. Many traffickers have also been subject to abuse in the past.

What are victim vulnerabilities and risk factors?

human trafficking Anyone can fall victim to trafficking, but traffickers prey in particular on vulnerable people such as those who:

have an unstable living situation
have previously experienced other forms of violence such as sexual abuse or domestic violence
have run away or are involved in the juvenile justice or child welfare system
are undocumented immigrants
have a language barrier
are facing poverty or economic need
have a caregiver or family member who has a substance use issue
are addicted to drugs or alcohol
have a physical or mental disability

(https://humantraffickinghotline.org/en/human-trafficking/recognizing-signs)

Sex traffickers work to develop relationships with their targets, either virtually or in person, to groom them for trafficking, according to the National Center on Sexual Exploitation. One frequent tactic is to pretend romantic interest and convince the victim to send nude photos. The trafficker then uses these photos to blackmail the victim. This tactic is called sextortion, and is becoming increasingly frequent.

For example, from October 2021 to March 2023, the FBI received over 13,000 reports of financial sextortion of minors. The sextortion involved at least 12,600 victims, primarily boys, which led to at least 20 suicides. (https://enough.org/stats_social_media)

Labor traffickers may promise lucrative jobs or easy work to potential victims, perhaps running ads online. The jobs may be far away, leaving the victim with no support, or the trafficker may take the victim’s passport or require them to sign a contract they don’t understand, which gives the trafficker control of their income.

In both labor and sex trafficking, traffickers use a variety of tools, from promises of love or wealth to threats, blackmail, and physical violence, to exploit vulnerable people.

What are sexting and sextortion?

Sexting is “youth writing sexually explicit messages, taking sexually explicit photos of themselves or others in their peer group, and transmitting those photos and/or messages to their peers,” according to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. This often happens when a teen sends a sexually explicit picture via cell phone, computer, or video game.

These images are easy for the recipient to forward and are quickly out of the sender’s control. Having nudes online is scary, but there is hope through “Take it Down,” a free service that helps remove or stop the online sharing of nude or sexually explicit videos/images. It is offered by the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children: https://takeitdown.ncmec.org/.

Sexting is against the law in Virginia and nationally (see the Virginia Rules “Technology and You” section for detailed information).

Where does trafficking occur?

Online and via social media: Traffickers use many online platforms to identify, groom and exploit potential victims online. These include:

Online communities
Social media apps and platforms such as TikTok, Instagram, Snapchat, Kik, Facebook, WhatsApp, etc.
Dating sites such as Tinder, Bumble, and Grindr
Gaming sites and platforms such as Twitch and Discord
Job postings

In person: Places where human trafficking may take place include, but are not limited to:

Anywhere drugs are sold, both prescription and illegal
Abandoned buildings
Festivals, car races, vacation spots, tourist attractions, casinos and gaming locations, interstate exchanges, seaports/military bases, exotic dance clubs
Health and beauty services such as nail salons, massage parlors
Manufacturing sites
Construction sites
Agriculture, especially traveling work crews
Domestic and hospitality businesses (cleaning, maid service, laundries)

It’s important to remember that trafficking can happen anywhere. Victims may be trafficked in businesses that appear legitimate but operate as brothels or covers for forced labor, or even by family members in their homes.

What are the signs of human trafficking?

You may have seen human trafficking taking place without realizing it. Here are some signs to look for (from https://humantraffickinghotline.org/en/human-trafficking/recognizing-signs).

Signs someone may be experiencing trafficking:

disconnected from friends, family, school community, etc.;
sudden change in behavior;
fearful, timid, or submissive;
signs of being deprived of food, water, sleep, or medical care; and
seemingly not able to make their own decisions or being “coached” in what to say.

Someone may be experiencing labor trafficking or exploitation if they:

Feel pressured by their employer to stay in a job they want to leave.
Owe money to an employer or recruiter, or are not being paid what they were promised.
Do not have control of their passport or other identity documents.
Are living and working in isolated conditions, cut off from others and support systems.
Appear to be monitored by another person when talking or interacting with others.
Are being threatened by their boss with deportation or other harm.
Are working in dangerous conditions without proper safety gear, training, adequate breaks, or other protections.
Are living in dangerous, overcrowded, or inhumane conditions provided by an employer.

Someone may be experiencing sex trafficking if they:

Live with or are dependent on a family member with a substance use problem or who is abusive.
Have a controlling parent, guardian, romantic partner, or “sponsor” who will not allow them to meet or speak with anyone alone or who monitors their movements, spending, or communications.
Work in an industry where it may be common to be pressured into performing sex acts for money, such as a strip club, illicit cantina, go-go bar, or illicit massage business.
Have a “pimp” or “manager” in the commercial sex industry, want to stop participating in commercial sex but feel scared or unable to leave the situation.
Disclose that they were reluctant to engage in commercial sex but were pressured into it.
Live where they work or are transported by guards between home and workplace.

For more indicators, visit https://www.dhs.gov/blue-campaign/indicators-human-trafficking and https://humantraffickinghotline.org/en/human-trafficking/recognizing-signs

How do you report suspected human trafficking?

If you or someone you know is being trafficked and need services, contact:

National Human Trafficking Hotline: Call 1-888-373-7888 (TTY: 711) or Text “HELP” or “INFO” to 233733 (BEFREE) (https://www.humantraffickinghotline.org)
Virginia State Police: submit an anonymous tip at https://www.tip411.com/tips/vastatepolice/new, text 847411, or contact #77 to report information (https://vsp.virginia.gov/human-trafficking/)
Local Emergency Services: Call 911
Visit Blue Campaign (https://www.dhs.gov/blue-campaign) and Project iGuardian (https://www.dhs.gov/hsi/iguardian) for additional resources.

Remember: Human trafficking victims have experienced significant trauma and harm and may be unable or prevented from getting help due to existing vulnerabilities. It is important to treat victims with care and respect, and get immediate, professional support to ensure a victim-centered and trauma-informed response.

Is there additional assistance for victims of human trafficking?

In addition to state programs mentioned above, there are Virginia laws that support trafficking victims. These include:

Code of Virginia § 23.1-506(A)(10) – Eligibility for in-state tuition Any non-Virginia student who is currently present in the Commonwealth as a result of being a victim of human trafficking is eligible for in-state tuition charges regardless of domicile, unless the law states otherwise.

Code of Virginia § 16.1-269.1 – If a juvenile is accused of a felony offense that allows them to be tried as an adult, and there is evidence that the person who was assaulted, trafficked or sexually assaulted the juvenile, the court will prioritize the successful treatment and rehabilitation of the juvenile victim.

Code of Virginia § 63.2-1506.1 – Children’s advocacy centers can interview alleged victims during the human trafficking assessment.

How can you stay safe online?

Remember that many traffickers choose and groom their victims online.

Turn off GPS/location.
Set profiles to private.
Block the people that make you feel uncomfortable and/or are unknown by you.
Don’t send anything you would be embarrassed by if it went viral.
Immediately speak to an adult if someone is harassing you, asking for favors, asking for pictures, asking to meet with you, or threatening you.

How can you stay safe online?

Trust your intuition – if something feels “off” or wrong, it probably is. Leave immediately and tell someone you trust.
Establish a “safe person” you can trust, someone who is consistent, kind, respectful, and trustworthy, and let them know if something feels wrong.
Keep important documents and medication with you at all times; no one has the right to take those from you.
Keep important phone numbers (trusted person, etc.) with you at all times.
Don’t go with someone, or to a location, you do not know.
If you think you might be in immediate danger, call 911.

Remember: In any relationship, consent means that you have given permission for something or agreed to do something. Both people must offer consent and must be of clear mind, without impaired thinking. Consent can be withdrawn at any time. You are allowed to change your mind about your body.

For more information, see https://humantraffickinghotline.org/en/safety-planning-information