A new report from a nonprofit group that tracks human trafficking says the crime is on the rise here in Ohio and nationally.
The Polaris Project says 375 trafficking cases from Ohio were reported to a national hotline last year. That’s a 23% increase over the year before. Democratic Representative Teresa Fedor, who has worked to pass legislation to crack down on the problem, says she’s not surprised.
“Now that we are really looking at it and looking at it deeply as far as recommendations to eradicate it, we are discovering how really bad it is.”
The report shows one in four cases in Ohio involved someone under the age of 18. Fedor says she’s working on legislation that is specifically aimed at stopping human trafficking of children.