“The truth is that every woman is at risk of being trafficked just by the very fact that we’re women.”
The dark underbelly of London’s sex trafficking weaves through the city’s strip clubs, east-end motels and massage parlours. It spreads across the streets of downtown and into houses and apartments.
It’s a crime that can hide in plain sight—women swept up and bound by invisible chains to what is often called modern-day slavery.
They are forced into the “game” by pimps and then sold, beaten and raped by “johns.” The perpetrators can be individuals, family members, or more commonly, part of larger organized crime.
Experts consider London, Ont., a hub for human trafficking. Its location along the 401 corridor, between Detroit and Toronto, makes the city both a source and destination for sex trafficking.
In London, between 2013 and 2015:
285
suspected traffickers reported
433
persons considered at risk for trafficking
492
criminal code charges trafficking charges laid
*statistics from the London Abused Women’s Centre
Because of this, the London Police Service (LPS) has a human trafficking unit that rescues victims, stops recruitment and enforces laws related to solicitation.
Cam Halliday, a Detective at the Human Trafficking Unit, said their units first concern is the safety of human trafficking victims.
“The Human Trafficking Unit’s priority is to identify, rescue and further assist and support victims of human trafficking and put them in contact with support services. The arrest of “johns” is to act as a deterrent to others and to remove the need for sex workers,” said Halliday.
He said human trafficking is a transient crime with women being moved throughout the province, if not and the country, to be exploited.
“London is one of these such stops in the circuit,” he said.
The unit combats human trafficking by partnering with other police agencies in Windsor, Kitchener-Waterloo and St. Thomas. The operational goal is to make contact with women who are suspected of being trafficked, ensure their safety and offer support.
The London Police Service have also conducted human trafficking stings as a way to stop recruitment in the Forest city. One called, “Project Circuit” was a fake online ad that resulted in over 9,000 views from Oct. 16 and Nov. 23, 2018.
The statistics from Project Circuit:
25
men were charged
56
women between 16 and 41 met with police
24
of the women were Londoners
The LPS explained they are working on educating the community and holding johns responsible for their actions, as well as strengthening their relationship with victims of trafficking.
“We have to evolve ourselves and make ourselves approachable and trusted, especially for victims or women that are currently in sex trafficking,” he said. “It takes a lot of courage and strength to come forward.”
On July 27, 2019, a London man and woman were charged with human trafficking related offences after a victim contacted London police and brought an online recruitment ad to light.
Police said the online ad promised students a “great opportunity” to make hundreds of dollars a day.
Halliday said they’ve seen an increase in online recruitment ads that end up luring women to sex trafficking.
Megan Walker, executive director of the London Abused Women Centre (LAWC), said these ads appear legitimate and show up on girls’ social media feeds.
She explains the ads will offer excessive amounts of money and that students facing financial hardships could be more likely to respond.
“It’s very important for universities and colleges to be aware of what’s happening to their students. While this is not a new issue for universities and colleges, it’s a growing one.”
Walker said once girls are lured into sex trafficking, it’s difficult for them to leave. The women are often introduced to addictive substances, or traffickers will threaten violence against the girl’s family.
“It’s a world where they are sometimes turning 18 tricks per day depending on what the expectations are, and it’s a pretty quick way to lose your soul,” she said. “They feel they have nothing left.”
Between 2015 and 2018, the London Abused Women’s Centre, in conjunction with the Salvation Army and Youth Opportunities Unlimited provided the following:
2,015
sexually-exploited, prostituted, sex trafficked or at-risk women and girls were provided some form of support
432
women and girls were provided with counselling
380
women were identified as being sex trafficked
153
families whose daughters had been trafficked received support
Wendy Goldsmith, an advocate counsellor for human trafficking at the LAWC, said the journey to escape, and find meaningful treatment, is often a turbulent process.
She said trafficking affects women of all ages and that those who seek services at the LAWC come from diverse backgrounds.
However their stories share many similarities—women and girls lured into sex trafficking by men, referred to as “Romeo” pimps, who prey on vulnerabilities.
“Sometimes that grooming can last for a few weeks or sometimes it's just a few days,” said Goldsmith. “Suddenly these girls realize, 'holy shit, I'm stuck here and he's forcing me to do stuff.'”
Goldsmith said a part of her job is working with victims’ family members. She often introduces them to LeosList.com, a website that provides listings for escorts, and while some posts may be from sex-workers, the websites are a hotbed for pimps advertising their trafficking victims.
Goldsmith said she will scroll through these sites with families as a way to find their missing person.
“They don't know where to even start, so we help them go through the list and we help them connect with the police,” she said. “We really just try and strategize with them and find the best way to reach out to that girl and help them do that.”
Even when women do manage to escape, there’s a long road to recovery ahead.
Caroline Pugh-Roberts knows this all too well.
She was trafficked for eight years.
Pugh-Roberts explains how Invisible Chains trap women in trafficking.
Today, she’s a peer support worker at the Salvation Army in London and works with sex trafficking victims. It’s her hope that she can impact the lives of others and help eliminate trafficking in the city.
Pugh-Roberts said education and informing the community about the realities faced by human trafficking victims is essential to help fight the issue. It’s a sentiment that Goldsmith shares, regardless of how painful the stories can be to hear.
“Sometimes you have to just go and cry because the stories are that awful. There are stories that I’ve been told that I will never speak because I don’t want to burden anyone else with the truth of what happened to somebody.”