This week, the sheriff of Hillsborough County, Florida revealed that nearly 150 people in the community had been arrested in connection with human trafficking in the past three months. In addition, seven victims had been recovered.
Operation Summer Shield found that women as young as 16 were being trafficked, Sheriff Chad Chronister said at a news conference on Tuesday morning. Five adult women and two underage girls were recovered in the operation.
JUST IN: 148 arrested, 7 victims recovered during human trafficking bust in Hillsborough County, Fla. - Sheriff pic.twitter.com/XoRkzyiYnb
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Three cases involved were more “egregious,” he explained.
In one case, a suspect named John Randall Craddock, 33, thought he was engaging with a 15-year-old girl he met online. Craddock was really communicating with an undercover detective.
"Craddock sent numerous explicit and perverse messages and even audio messages describing the sexual acts he wanted to perform on this 15-year-old," Chronister said. Craddock is now facing charges including traveling to meet a minor after using computer services/devices to solicit certain illegal acts and attempted lewd or lascivious battery.
Another suspect, Devante Kershaw, 28, was "hatching a business plan of sorts" to exploit women for profit. Online, Kershaw connected with a woman who he believed to be a 30-year-old woman. It was an undercover detective (via WTSP):
Over the period of three weeks, he laid out his "scheme" where he would give the victim just 40% of the profits he got from exploiting her. He planned to set up the dates and arrange the travel to other states.
"Kershaw was so confident that he met with our undercover detective for over an hour," Chronister said.
The suspect was charged under the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act for conspiracy and was also charged with the unlawful use of a two-way communication device.
Law enforcement searches the internet and dark web to find human traffickers, Chronister said.
State Attorney Suzy Lopez said if convicted, human traffickers face a mandatory minimum sentence of life in Florida State Prison.
“We stand with you,” State Attorney Suzy Lopez said to the victims.
“The State Attorney’s Office here in Hillsborough County will vigorously prosecute anyone responsible for these horrific crimes and we don’t just fight for justice, we connect victims with the services that they need. Every survivor in our office gets a victim advocate, who helps them with the entire court process,” Lopez added.