San Diego law enforcement agencies on Tuesday launched a training program to help end human trafficking.
San Diego County District Attorney Summer Stephan said San Diego is a hot spot for sex trafficking.
“Just in the last few days, a 13-year-old was recovered that was being used in sex trafficking,” she said.
The Help Stop Human Trafficking Program was created by the San Diego Harbor Police in partnership with the District Attorney’s oOffice.
The program is a series of 20-minute training videos tailored to tourism industry employees.
“What the training will provide is eyes and ears that will detect the red flags,” Stephan said.
According to the U.S. Attorney’s office, in most cases, it’s not law enforcement officers who detect the first clues of human trafficking, but employees such as housekeeping workers and front desk workers.
Harbor Police Chief Mark Stainbrook said San Diego is the ideal hub for criminals operating underground.
“It has something to do with that we’re in a tourism triangle between San Diego, Los Angeles, Las Vegas, and being a border city in a huge tourist hub we see a lot of results of human trafficking here in many different ways,” he said.
Workers who take part in the training will learn how to recognize signs of human trafficking and report suspicious activity to law enforcement.
