But in reality, it’s happening here, too.

“Unfortunately, it exists everywhere,” said Leslie Hagen, U.S. Department of Justice National Indian Country training coordinator. “It exists even in places like Marquette, Michigan. … There is no place that I can think of that is exempt from this insidious crime.”

Hagen spoke during a presentation on human trafficking, along with several other local officials, last week on Northern Michigan University’s campus. About 50 people attended the informational session, which was sponsored by NMU and the Women’s Center.

While Hagen’s portion of the presentation focused on sexual exploitation and commercial sex acts related to the crime, she defined human trafficking as any act of “recruiting, transporting, transferring, harboring, and/or receiving a person through the use of force, fraud or coercion.”

Leslie Hagen, U.S. Department of Justice National Indian Country training coordinator, speaks during a human trafficking presentation on Northern Michigan University’s campus last week. (Journal photo by Kelsie Thompson)

“It is referenced as a form of modern day slavery,” she said, adding that anyone can become a victim.

“It’s not just limited to one particular racial or cultural or economic class.”

About 62 percent of victims are tricked into trafficking by someone they know and trust, said Hagen, while about 35 percent are sold into it by their own families. About 3 percent of victims are kidnapped.

Perpetrators seek out vulnerable people with low self-esteem, she said, often promising things like a romantic relationship, job opportunities or a better life.

According to Haean’s statistics, more than 90 percent of victims experienced some type of abuse at home.

“If you’re a vulnerable person and you’ve got no where to go, and no supports, predators can identify that individual almost instantly and just zero right in on them,” she said.

On average, it only takes a predator eight minutes to entice a victim, she said.

In Michigan, Hagen said dozens are taken into trafficking situations each month. In the U.S., 100,000 to 200,000 children are taken into the industry each year.

Victims — both children and adults — are often sexually exploited, being forced to take on anywhere between 100 and 1,500 clients per year, said Hagen.

The profit margin for trafficking is often higher than the sale of drugs, she said, while the likelihood of getting caught and prosecuted for the crime is lower.

“It’s a supply and demand type of crime,” she said. “Unfortunately, there is far too much demand.”

Marlene Mottes, a victims advocate for the U.S. Attorney’s Office Western District of Michigan in Marquette, also spoke at the presentation, touching on several local initiatives.

“Part of what I am going to be doing with my new position is working on awareness,” she said. “I believe that awareness and education is the best way to prevention.”

Mottes said she will play a role in “reorganizing and reenergizing” the U.P. Human Trafficking Task Force, which will consist of medical professionals, court officials, law enforcement, local service providers and community members.

“All of those areas that we need to have teaming together to make a plan for the U.P. on how we will prevent it, and if it is here, how we will help be able to have them investigated and moving on to prosecution … so we can keep our community safe,” she said.

Stacey Rasanen, a trooper with the Michigan State Police post in Negaunee, said there have been several human trafficking cases in the U.P. in the last few years, without citing specific numbers.

While the reorganization effort for the task force is just beginning to lift off the ground, Rasanen said she believes it’s a good tool for addressing the issue, and that she plans to participate.

Mottes said she is also hoping to help coordinate sexual assault nurse examiner trainings and related protocol in the U.P. as part of her new role. Another planned action is interacting with local school officials to raise awareness and coordinate teacher in-services addressing human trafficking.

“My hope is that going forward, as conversations continue, that you will look very hard and develop systems that will identify human trafficking,” said Hagen, addressing event attendees.

Hagen said red flags that may indicate someone is a victim of human trafficking include injuries or signs of physical abuse, malnourishment, few personal possessions, no identification, fearfulness toward authorities, the inability to come and go freely, sudden changes in behavior, drug or alcohol addictions and unexplained absences.

To report a human trafficking situation, or to get help, call the National Human Trafficking Hotline at 888-373-7888.

Kelsie Thompson can be reached at 906-228-2500, ext. 206. Her email address is kthompson@miningjournal.net.