Valley Crisis Center shines light on human trafficking cases in Merced

Debra Woods was 18 when she was abducted by a sex trafficker in Fresno and taken to Los Angeles.

Woods said the man who took her told her she would “entertain” some men and she remembers thinking it would be easy, because she could talk her way into receiving money from them.

“I was naive and he wooed me with money and fast cars,” she said. “It was extremely horrifying. I still have physical and mental scars.”

When she arrived at a hotel, Woods said, he threw condoms on the bed and told her what she was going to do. She tried to back out. He beat her.

Human trafficking is described as a modern day form of slavery, according to the Department of Homeland Security, that involves using “force, fraud or coercion to obtain some type of labor or commercial sex act.”

In the United States and around the world millions of men and women are trafficked every year, and profits are estimated to be in the billions.

In Merced County, 19 sex trafficking survivors were identified last year, according to data from the Valley Crisis Center. One identified survivor was involved in labor trafficking.

“It’s been happening in the community, and the community isn’t aware,” said Chee Yang, program director for Valley Crisis Center. “We want them to know that human trafficking happens in our own backyards.”

Valley Crisis Center held an awareness presentation on human trafficking for the first time last week, where Merced Mayor Mike Murphy declared January Human Trafficking Awareness month.

Woods came to share her experiences as a survivor and to talk about her Fresno-based nonprofit organization, Breaking the Chains. With help from law enforcement agencies, the group provides resources, rescue and relocation to adult female victims.

“They need to realize this isn’t their fault,” Woods said. “Life events put them in this situation, and we’re here to help.”

Frequently, Woods said, women are asked if they’re prostitutes or victims of sex trafficking, and she believes there is no difference between the two. The mislabeling that occurs can make victims start to think “is this my fault?”

“Nobody wants to be sexually exploited or violated,” she said. “If we can take off that scarlet letter, everything else is secondary.”

Most human trafficking cases in Merced County have involved minors and “oftentime they are runways and don’t feel like they have a lot of options,” according to Ilia McKinney, a Merced County deputy district attorney who has prosecuted numerous cases locally.

“You see them cooperating with pimps and it seems like they want to be doing these things when in reality it’s something they do just to survive,” McKinney said.

Pimps will take advantage of those most vulnerable, she said, and “basically use them as a meal ticket.”

McKinney said human trafficking is a problem everywhere, including Merced County. She said there has been more awareness in recent years and the Police Department has been “cracking down” on the issue.

Merced Police Officer Kalvin Haygood does a lot of work investigating the sex trafficking business. He said women who are being sex trafficked come from all over the Valley. Rather than going into the drug business, he said, individuals choose to go into sex trafficking because it’s harder to get caught.

“Trafficking is becoming a more lucrative cash flow business,” Haygood said. “They use intimidation on victims and know they won’t cooperate with police.”

He said women in the the Valley usually end up in Los Angeles because in smaller towns like Merced victims will be recognized more easily. Women end up traveling throughout the state, he said.

“A lot of these people don’t want to do it,” Haygood said. “They get hooked into it. The pimps pose as their boyfriend and the next thing you know he’s got her working and traveling up and down the state, making money going from hotel to hotel.”

Haygood urges parents to make sure they know what kind of relationships their children are forming and what they’re doing, especially on social media accounts where a lot of sex traffickers target young girls.

“We want to put a stop to it and find these people,” he said.

Valley Crisis is a resource for victims of human trafficking, and individuals can contact it at 209-725-7900 or at the 24-hour crisis line at 209-722-HELP (4357). The National Human Trafficking Hotline is 888-373-7888.

“Ask questions,” Woods said. “That’s the best advice I can give you as a community.”

This story was originally published January 8, 2017 at 3:47 PM with the headline "Valley Crisis Center shines light on human trafficking cases in Merced."