Groups that fight human trafficking say there are signs it will happen in Cleveland during the Republican National Convention.
Theresa Flores is a former human trafficking victim who now dedicates her life to fighting the practice. She monitors ads on internet websites.
“They tell you what phone number to call, and you call that number and you go to the hotel they tell you to. Sometimes they even tell you what hotel they are going to be at or what part of town.”
Flores says there has been an increase in the number of ads listed during the past few days, likely in an attempt to attract people who are visiting Cleveland during the Republican National Convention.
She says there were 163 ads late last week. And now that the event has started, she thinks that number has more than doubled.
“I’m certain it will hit 500 in one night.”
Flores says that’s big money for sex traffickers because the women often have multiple partners in one night. She and others have been going to hotels in the nine county area around Cleveland, handing out soaps that contain information about how to stop and report human trafficking. And Flores has been working with hotel managers to help them identify signs of human trafficking.
