child trafficking philadelphia

PCA believes strongly that understanding and responding to the needs of commercially sexually exploited youth in Philadelphia is critical, and we are committed to providing every child victim of sex trafficking with the same comprehensive care and coordinated response as other referrals to our facility. PHILADELPHIA United States Attorney William M. McSwain announced that three men, Andre Michael Felts, 32, Kevin Michael Francis, 60, and Ryan Keel, 39, all of Philadelphia, PA, were charged by Indictment for their roles in a sex trafficking operation that exploited numerous minor children from 2016 through 2017. Call 1-800-CALL-FBI or go online to tips.fbi.gov. The allegations against these three men are vile and disturbing. Yet many are not aware of it despite the fact more and more are becoming victims of human trafficking. It may cause some to realize what some in their own circle have been hiding from them, often suffering in silence or shame. The Philadelphia Juvenile Anti-Trafficking Coalition is the first of its kind focusing on and addressing the needs of child victims of human trafficking and vulnerable subpopulations that are overrepresented and underserved. Our resolve remains steadfast in finding other children in peril.. Call the hotline if you are a victim or want to help someone you think is a victim: 1-888-373-7888. Official websites use .gov While PCA does not conduct every forensic interview of these child victims, we work closely with police and the Department of Human Services (DHS) to make sure that every child still has access to the full constellation of services including medical and mental health treatment. Free counseling and trauma therapy services offered include individual and group sessions. Secure .gov websites use HTTPS Common examples of identified child trafficking cases include: Commercial sex Stripping Pornography Forced begging Magazine crews Au pairs or nannies Restaurant work Hair and nail salons Agricultural work Drug sales and cultivation The defendants allegedly used their cell phones to post advertisements of the victims on a website which is known to be used for advertising sexual services for a fee, directed the minors to participate in commercial sex acts, and took a portion of the proceeds on each occasion. Readers will enter into an uncomfortable world that will challenge their sensibilities, sense of safety, and stereotypical notions about the topic. CHERRY HILL, N.J. - Officials announced Tuesday th arrest of three people for allegedly trafficking a missing child for prostitution. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites. Our hope is for a better future for the 16 children we recovered, said Eric Gartner, the US marshal for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania. Philadelphia Children's Alliance. Many of these at-risk youths are referred for services with PCAs CSEC therapist, who is specially trained in this area. CNN Sans & 2016 Cable News Network. U.S. Attorney's Office, Eastern District of Pennsylvania, Executive Assistant U.S. Attorney for Community Engagement, Philadelphia Man Charged With Forcible Sex Trafficking of Multiple Victims Including a Minor, Philadelphia Man Sentenced to 15 Years in Prison for Sex Trafficking Two Teenage Girls, Fourth and Final Co-Defendant in Brutal West Philly Sex Trafficking Case Sentenced to 17 Years in Prison, Four Members and Associates of Reading Boarding House Sex Trafficking Gang The Sevens Convicted After Six-Week Trial in Allentown. Nationalities Service Center When the minors were rescued and Adams learned he was under investigation by the FBI, he allegedly wiped his cell phone clean of all incriminating evidence. A .gov website belongs to an official government organization in the United States. The church has a ministry that addresses trafficking in the Philadelphia area. Three Philadelphia men were charged, by a federal grand jury, in an indictment unsealed today in the Eastern District of Pennsylvania for their roles in a sex trafficking operation that exploited numerous minors from 2016 through 2017. The children involved are considered some of the most at-risk and challenging cases in the Philadelphia area, the marshals service said, based on high-risk factors including child sex trafficking and exploitation, sexual abuse, physical abuse, and medical or mental health conditions. For more information please call the New Day Hotline at 267-838-5866. UNITED STATES ATTORNEYS OFFICE If convicted, each defendant faces a maximum possible sentence of life imprisonment. Smith faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 15 years imprisonment and a maximum sentence of 30 years imprisonment on Count One, a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years imprisonment and a maximum possible sentence of life imprisonment on Count Two, a $500,000 fine, a lifetime period of supervised release and a $200 special assessment. Fax: 215-733-0876. A sentencing hearing is scheduled for October 31, 2013. Trial Attorney Jessica Urban of the Criminal Divisions Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS) and Assistant U.S. Attorney Sara Solow of the Eastern District of Pennsylvania are prosecuting the case. WebPhiladelphia Men Charged with Child Sex Trafficking. EASTERN DISTRICT OF PENNSYLVANIA Children cannot sell sex even in places where prostitution is legal. WebIn January 2020, we convened the Philadelphia Juvenile Anti-Trafficking Coalition, gathering 50+ public and private agencies to collaborate on identifying gaps in services for trafficked Email WebSixteen children considered critically missing were rescued during a four-week operation that concluded this week, according to the US Marshals Service office in Philadelphia. Led by U.S. Attorneys Offices and CEOS, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. Its even more difficult to ascertain who are being forced or coerced into the trade. Based on the results of that assessment, PCA will secure services for the child. WebCSEC or Child Sex Trafficking Sex trafficking affects children, too. Enslavement of African Americans is rising in the City of Brotherly Love and Sister Affection. The children were cleaning blood and animal parts off the floor of meatpacking plants by night and going to school by day, the Labor Department investigators said. Further, Keel and Felts allegedly had explicit discussions via Facebook Messenger about the commercial sex acts occurring at the residences. It will also educate parents and family members to notice the warning signs of children and adolescents who may be involved in the life, as many call it. After a few days they are trafficking them. Deputy US marshals assigned to the Eastern District of Pennsylvania Fugitive Task Force led the operation along with personnel from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, the Philadelphia Department of Human Services, Bucks County Children Youth Services, the Philadelphia Police Departments Human Trafficking Unit, and the FBI. Use tab to navigate through the menu items. During the week-long trial, the government proved that the defendant organized, operated and led a sex trafficking venture based in and around Northeast Philadelphia between 2013 and 2015, and in 2018. Lock Suite 1250, 615 Chestnut Street For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc. 615 Chestnut Street, Suite 1250 Nationalities Service Center provides intensive case management services to support with basic needs, safety planning, acquiring public benefits, and other referrals for physical and mental health providers. WebVictims of human trafficking can be children or adults, U.S. citizens or foreign nationals, male or female. The FBIs Philadelphia Field Division is investigating the case and received significant assistance from the Philadelphia Police Department. In addition, PCA works closely with DHS to provide comprehensive assessments of children referred to DHS who are screened for concerns of being exploited. The year 2020 marks the 150th anniversary of the Department of Justice. 33 missing children found in anti-human trafficking operation in Southern California. So far the To view tips on identifying sex and labor trafficking red flags, please see the Red Flags Infographic. Official websites use .gov 615 Chestnut Street, Suite 1250 Consequently, in order to rescue human trafficking victims, one must know how to identify them, the warning signs, and how to help them. The National Human Trafficking Resource Center (NHTRC) is a nationalanti-trafficking hotline and resource center serving victims and survivors of human trafficking and the anti-trafficking community in the United States. Fax Line:(215) 861-8618. The FBI will never stop working to find and help trafficked victims, to protect them from further abuse and keep their traffickers from hurting anyone else.. Anyone who is a victim of child sex trafficking or has A locked padlock When you hear the testimony of those who have been victimized, men have to be honest. you are consenting to receive marketing emails from: CHILD USA, 3508 MARKET STREET, Philadelphia, PA, 19104. UNITED STATES ATTORNEYS OFFICE WOAR, Philadelphias only rape crisis center, provides free counseling and trauma therapy services to child, teen, and adult survivors of sexual violence, including survivors of sex trafficking. Justice At Work Allegedly, this defendant forced four young people, one a minor child, to sell their bodies for his financial gain. Email. Kevin Smith allegedly did just that to three young women and a child. is beginning a series about human trafficking. Dawns Place offers a year-long residential program to survivors of commercial sexual exploitation or sex trafficking. Philadelphia, PA 19106, JENNIFER CRANDALL A subsequent forensic examination of Smiths laptop computer revealed two sexually explicit images of Minor 1, both of which were taken prior to her 18th birthday. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc. When DHS or police identify a child that exhibits red flags, they send that child to PCA for a full assessment. President Obama said there is a need to do more to fight against the exploitation of human beings for profit. WebAdding a category of perpetrator to include: an individual 18 years of age or older who engages a child in severe forms of trafficking in persons or sex trafficking, as those terms are defined under section 103 of the Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000. PCA conducts forensic interviews of the younger victims, and our partners in the Human Trafficking Task Force conduct the interviews for older teens. Smith was charged locally and was later charged in a federal indictment. He has no regard for the law -- or even basic human decency -- as evidenced by his willingness to sell the bodies of children for sex to benefit himself. Andre Michael Felts, aka Dre and Plug, 32, and Kevin Michael Francis, aka Kev, 60, were each charged with one count of conspiracy to sex traffic a minor and four counts of sex trafficking a minor. UNITED STATES ATTORNEY'S OFFICE, EASTERN DISTRICTof PENNSYLVANIA Suite 1250, 615 Chestnut Street, Philadelphia, PA 19106 PATTY HARTMAN, Media Contact, 215-861-8525, Eastern District of Pennsylvania 615 Chestnut Street, Suite 1250 Did you encounter any technical issues? Earlier this month outgoing President Barack Obama issued a proclamation declaring January as National Slavery and Human Trafficking Prevention Month. At least one of the victims was also a victim of physical violence during the operation of the trafficking ring: according to public filings, Felts pulled her from a vehicle and repeatedly stomped on her. We know of 22 locations in the state where this is taking place. It is going take the men taking control to reverse this. Kendall was also charged with both production and distribution of child pornography, and Adams was also charged with tampering with evidence in a federal investigation. He also reiterated that the United States, including cities like Philadelphia, must continue this as part of the fight for human rights. 2. New Day is a multi-faceted program designed to serve survivors of commercial sexual exploitation as well as sex and labor trafficking. We, as a society, have to begin facing up to it. WebPHILADELPHIA United States Attorney William M. McSwain announced that three men, Andre Michael Felts, 32, Kevin Michael Francis, 60, and Ryan Keel, 39, all of Philadelphia, Commercial Sexual Exploitation Institute The actual statistics for human trafficking victims from neighborhoods like North, West or South Philadelphia or Northwest Philadelphia neighborhoods like Germantown and Mount Airy is difficult to track. PHILADELPHIA Acting United States Attorney Jennifer Arbittier Williams announced that Kevin Smith, 27, of Philadelphia, PA, was charged by Indictment with sex trafficking by force and sex trafficking a minor. The Indictment alleges that Felts ran a prostitution ring that recruited and enticed young girls, including one who was only fifteen years old, to engage in commercial sex acts; harbored the victims at various residences for that purpose; transported and provided the victims to males who purchased the commercial sex acts; and collected a portion of the proceeds. Discovery Company. 615 Chestnut Street, Suite 1250 Tweet Share Pin Email Tweet Share Pin Email Related Posts AACP Philadelphia Branch Update NAACP Philadelphia Branch Tweet Share Pin Email ABOVE PHOTO: President Joe Biden walks with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy at St. Tweet Share Pin Email By MARK SHERMAN and JESSICA GRESKO WASHINGTON (AP) Conservative justices holding theSupreme Tweet Share Pin Email By DAN GELSTON PHILADELPHIA (AP) Irv Cross was a man of faith Tweet Share Pin Email Tweet Share Pin Email Related Posts Whats Cookin? Eastern District of Pennsylvania ) or https:// means youve safely connected to the .gov website. He said this is the time to shine the light on both the consequences and root causes of human trafficking. The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation with assistance from the Philadelphia Police Department, and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Sara Solow and Trial Attorney Jessica Urban of the Department of Justice Criminal Divisions Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS). The Institute to Address Commercial Sexual Exploitation at Villanova University partners with organizations united against sex trafficking and CSE. Know that the FBI and our law enforcement partners are working every day to put traffickers like Horne behind bars and ensure some justice for their victims. Lock The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, with assistance from the Delaware County District Attorneys Office, the Bensalem Police Department, the Media Borough Police Department, the Tinicum Township Police Department and the Philadelphia Police Department. Its not just that women have lowered their standards, but that men are the one who see women as lower, too.. Lock Address: 300 E. Hunting Park Avenue Philadelphia, PA 19124 A lock ( Rich Walls of North Philadelphia learned much from an all-male workshop held at Enon last year. Secure .gov websites use HTTPS The crimes Smith is accused of committing are some of the most devastating to victims that our office prosecutes, said Acting U.S. Attorney Williams. Many who engage in the paid sex during Super Bowl season are not the typical prostitute street walker. Commercial sexual exploitation at Villanova University partners with organizations United against sex trafficking children. That to three young women and a child discussions via Facebook Messenger about commercial! Human trafficking trafficking Prevention month 33 missing children found in anti-human trafficking operation in Southern.. Will challenge their sensibilities, sense of safety, and stereotypical notions about the.! 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