More than 50 victims of human trafficking have been rescued in a sting operation across California.
14 of those rescued are minors, officials with the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Office said. Some were as young as 13.
The sting operation, dubbed “Operation Reclaim and Rebuild,” resulted in 339 arrests. Those arrested include people who were soliciting sex from underage teens and pimps who had put the victims up for sale.
“No woman should be walking the streets working for another man selling her body for money,” Kent Wegener, L.A. County Sheriffs Dept. Human Trafficking Bureau, said. “It’s not appropriate it’s not the way it’s supposed to be, and on the other side of the coin, the demand side. Somewhere along the line someone told these men it’s ok to pay for commercial and it’s not ok.”
Officials say some of the victims were runaways or homeless, while some had been lured by traffickers via the internet.
