“We Want to Get To The Root of It” | HPD shifts strategy to address sex trade in Honolulu

By Cynthia Yip

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    HONOLULU (KITV) — The Honolulu Police Department recently shifted its approach to addressing prostitution in the city. In an Island News exclusive, the new policy prioritizes a more comprehensive and compassionate strategy.

At HPD, they say about 80% of sex workers nationwide and in Hawaii, are actually victims. So the shift in law enforcement is to protect vulnerable individuals and dismantle the criminal networks behind human trafficking.

SGT. Johnny Taflinger, HPD Human Trafficking says, “They [the victims] have been coerced. They are threatened, psychologically intimidated, by their pimps, or some say, their bosses, into this profession. So we want to get to the root of it. In the past, we have been arresting a lot of sex workers. But recently, it’s declined because we’re going to this new approach, so that we can actually help them get their life straightened out and find the root of the problem.”

Advocates helping sex workers say, they are often victims and being exploited.

Victoria Roland , Susannah Wesley Community Center Trafficking Victim Assistance State Wide Adminstrator says, “We have to build these connections and relationships. So folks and victims can become survivors and talk about what happened to them. A lot of people are still silent with what’s happening because of the dangerousness with online and being tricked faster than they could have even thought right.”

HPD says unlike 10 years ago, when you would see sex workers on the streets, now traffickers, pimps and even some workers are mostly off the streets and onto social media to find their clients.

“Everything is social media…they figured out a way to get ads on social media and find their customer base and bring them to social media to fill their business ventures,” says SGT. Johnny Taflinger, with the HPD Human Trafficking division.

Sergeant Taflinger adds, some of the sex workers are as young as 15-years-old, and says words can not express how he feels when he rescues a child.

“When you recover a child, you recover a sex worker, an adult. You just want the feelings that you get, just helping that person and knowing you probably saved this person’s life, that’s all I need.”

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