Missouri police rescue 8 human trafficking victims

By CNN Newsource

Published February 6, 2021 10:15 AM

St. Joseph, Missouri (KCTV) — St. Joseph Police, Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt, and the Missouri State Highway Patrol have successfully completed a human trafficking operation Friday night.

The operation was completed at St. Joseph’s, Bucky’s and Love’s Travel Stop. St. Joseph Police Department, the Buchanan County Sheriff’s Office, the Missouri State Highway Patrol and Missouri Attorney General’s Anti-Human Trafficking Task Force, arrested 3 people with one arrest pending. They were able to rescue 6 victims, 5 female and one male. Two more victims were children aged two and one an infant. The victims were offered food, lodging, medical services, counseling, and drug counseling.

“Last night, my Office’s Anti-Human Trafficking Task Force, in coordination with multiple law enforcement agencies, conducted a successful human trafficking operation at two truck stops in St. Joseph, resulting in 6 victims and 2 children being rescued and 3 arrests,” said Attorney General Schmitt. “This operation was successful because of cooperation between my Office, the St. Joseph Police Department, the state highway patrol, the Buchanan County Sheriff’s Office, and 13 other agencies and departments. This unprecedented success should send clear a message to traffickers: you are not welcome in Missouri, and you can’t hide any longer.”

Over 16 different agencies worked together in the rescue, including St. Joseph Police Department, Missouri State Highway Patrol, Attorney General’s Office, Kansas City Police Department, Buchanan County Sheriff’s Office, Johnson County Sheriff’s Office, Federal Bureau of Investigation, U.S. Marshals, Department of Corrections, Probation and Parole, State Parks, and others.

Further details about the operation cannot be released at this time as the in is ongoing.

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