By MATT PIKE
St. Joseph Post
January is Human Trafficking Awareness month and law enforcement officials want everyone to be aware of the growing problem.
According the Human Trafficking Hotline there were 24o cases in Missouri in 2021. Law enforcement officers are attempting to slow that number down.
Seargent Shane Hux with Troop H of the Missouri Highway Patrol in St. Joseph says human trafficking is a big problem.
"It's a $150 billion industry annually, that's the second largest the only one that's in front of it is the narcotics trade, so like I said it's the second biggest criminal enterprise going on right now in the United States," Hux tells KFEQ/St. Joseph Post.
The Highway Patrol last week helped raise awareness by handing out brochures during interactions with commercial vehicle drivers, showing signs of potential human trafficking as well as giving out the number to call if it is suspected.
Hux says many people may not know the full definition of what human trafficking is.
"A lot of people when they think of it, they think of it as a sex trafficking, but it also includes forced labor or domestic servitude," Hux explains.
Hux says one sign of potential human trafficking is if you see a juvenile with an adult who is not related to them.
"A lot of times they have lack of control over their schedule, their money or items, even when it comes to their identification, they may not be in possession of that," Hux says. "The person that is trafficking them will probably be in possession of those types of documents."
Hux says that people should also look for signs of physical trauma, such as bruises or cuts, as well as signs of substance abuse.
Buchanan County Sheriff Bill Puett says the problem is continually growing in Missouri, especially locally.
"Kansas City is considered the fifth largest hub for human trafficking in the United States because obviously the locality and all the different routes in and out, you have an international airport," Puett tells host Barry Birr on the KFEQ Hotline.
And that's why Puett says law enforcement is constantly working with convenience store workers as well as commercial truck drivers
"Is because they know that these victims are trafficked by vehicle and they're not flown around and these types of things," Puett explains.
Puett says his office is also always working with officers to detect signs of potential human trafficking.
"Why is this child in the car, does it look right, the patrol is very aggressive on that and they've got some folks," Puett explains. "I know Kansas City just put some stuff out recently and they're looking at it."