Scottsdale employees will be trained to recognize human trafficking

ARIZONA – In order to recognize what trafficking in persons is and how it occurs, the damages they do to the victims and who to report, a group made up of authorities and civil organizations began a course for workers in the city of Socttsdale, Arizona, on this theme.

The Office of Attorney General Mark Brnovich; The Arizona Anti-Trafficking Network and the National Security Investigations group are in charge of training all public employees on how to identify, report and prevent human trafficking and sex trafficking through the SAFE Action Project.

Through a press release, the attorney general’s office reported that this is one of the largest cities in the state and, with the collaboration of all participants, “together we are making a difference and helping vulnerable people, exploited in our communities”.

Given this, the mayor of this city, David D. Ortega, said that his community is safe to visit and do business, but also “it is very sad to know that this type of terrible crime can occur here or in any city”.

That city employees are aware of these acts is extremely important, since “knowing how to detect these situations can help save someone who is being exploited”, he added.

The SAFE Action Project began with the training of more than 2,400 workers in this town and this will be the first city to have this type of information.

Once the worker training is complete, a new facet of this program will begin, where the city police will be the one to train those who work in local restaurants and bars on the warning signs of human trafficking.

Scottsdale Police Chief Jeff Walther said that the mission of this department and everyone in the country is “to protect the most vulnerable, it is a fundamental part of the mission of the police” and with this program you can help, protect and prevent such explotation.

“No city is immune to these horrible crimes, including ours”, for this reason the Police Department already has a group that “focuses entirely on reducing involuntary servitude and sex trafficking through education, the application of the law and human services”, he added.