January is Human Trafficking Awareness Month. Human trafficking is a billion dollar business around the world and it thrives here in Orange County. The crime deprives a person of their liberty through the use of force, fraud or coercion for the purposes of labor or sexual exploitation.
OCTA continues to raise public awareness of human trafficking through its award-winning Be the One campaign.
Because victims might be using Orange County buses, stops and transit centers, coach operators are trained to recognize and help victims. Hundreds of coach operators have received annual training from members of the Orange County Sheriff’s Department Transit Police and the Orange County Human Trafficking Task Force (OCHTTF).
According to the OCHTTF, 71 percent of U.S. sex trafficking victims were recruited into “the life” by someone they know.
Click here to learn more about human trafficking and what you can do to join the fight against it.