Colorado Police Department’s Human Trafficking Unit Rescues 29 Survivors in One Year

Human traffickers are turning children’s hunger, desperation and need for affection into tools of exploitation, a Colorado city police sergeant warned after the first year of his dedicated unit brought dozens of survivors to safety.

The Aurora Police Department’s (APD) Human Trafficking Unit opened 53 investigations, arrested 28 suspects, and recovered 29 survivors, including 15 minors, in its first year.

APD Sgt. Joseph Sullivan told Fox News Digital that his work reveals abuse that residents may never suspect was happening around them.

According to the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS), “human trafficking involves the use of force, fraud, or coercion to obtain a certain type of labor or commercial sex act.”

MIKE WALTZ AND TIM TEBOW LAUNCHED EFFORT TO FIGHT ONLINE CHILD EXPLOITATION: “IT’S HAPPENING IN THEIR BACKYARD”

Federal law enforcement reported 36 cases of human trafficking at truck stops in 2023, according to the National Human Trafficking Hotline. (iStock)

“This is happening in our backyard, not just elsewhere,” Sullivan said.

For Sullivan, a teenager’s plea illustrates both the urgency of this mission and the difficult path survivors face once investigators reach them.

The 16-year-old girl had been brought to Aurora — a city of just over 400,000 people outside Denver — from another city by her boyfriend, who then left her there, Sullivan said.

Trying to survive, she was sexually exploited by people living in an apartment complex in exchange for housing, drugs or food.

SIX MINOR GIRLS RECOVERED DURING SWEEP OPERATION TARGETING FAMOUS TRAFFIC CORRIDOR

People hold signs calling for an end to human trafficking. The Aurora Police Department’s human trafficking unit picked up 29 survivors, including 15 minors, in its first year. (Stephen Maturen/Getty Images, file)

During an interview, she asked a detective to find those responsible.

“’I really hope you can find the people who are doing this, because it really hurts me that I have to do this just to survive,’” Sullivan remembers saying.

The girl died of an overdose a few months later, he said.

His words stayed with him.

“It’s really satisfying to be able to contact these survivors and then identify who is exploiting them and hold them accountable,” Sullivan said.

FLORIDA-LED OPERATION SAVES 163 CHILDREN WORLDWIDE IN HISTORIC STATE SWEEP AND HUNTS SUSPECTED PREDATORS

The Aurora police anti-trafficking unit has three detectives and a supervising sergeant. (Fox News digital, file)

But reaching someone does not guarantee immediate or lasting escape. Survivors may need repeated contact, resources and offers of help before they can find a way out, he said.

This is part of why it’s important to have dedicated detectives.

Created in September 2025, the traffic unit has three detectives and a master sergeant. Sullivan said his focus was sex trafficking involving people 21 and younger, allowing the small team to focus their efforts.

Investigations require time to gather evidence, build cases and help victims feel comfortable enough to testify.

“Having a dedicated unit helps reduce their overall caseload and allows them to devote the time and effort these cases deserve,” Sullivan said.

DOJ SAYS 11 MIGRANTS CHARGED IN MULTI-STATE SEX TRAFFICKING, DRUGS AND GUNS CASE

APD Bureau of Investigation Cmdr. Marc Paolino said the unit was built to put survivors at the center of investigations while targeting those who exploit them.

“The work they have done has made our community safer and sent a clear message that the Aurora Police Department will aggressively pursue anyone who exploits others for this type of heinous criminal activity,” Paolino said in a department statement.

Among those arrested is Marshae Wheelock, 24, of Aurora, who police have linked to several cases allegedly involving child exploitation over several years.

“Marshae Wheelock represents the type of offender that the Human Trafficking Unit was created to address; someone who repeatedly preys on vulnerable children,” APD Deputy Chief Mark Hildebrand said in the release.

Trump signs Hawley measure adding 200 child exploitation investigators in largest enforcement effort yet

The Aurora Police Department works with social service officials, nonprofit organizations and victim advocates. (Aurora Police Department)

The department also detailed a sting operation in February in which investigators picked up a 16-year-old girl and later identified three suspects accused of sexually exploiting her for financial gain.

Sullivan warned that trafficking is often very different from the kidnappings depicted in movies. It is not necessary for someone to be snatched off the street by another person to exploit their vulnerability.

“There’s some sort of need that a trafficker identifies to exploit, and that’s how they get in,” Sullivan said.

This need may be for shelter, food, money or affection. Bridging it with legitimate support is a central part of helping survivors, he said.

APD works with social service officials, nonprofit organizations and victim advocates. Sullivan pointed to a local group, From Silence to Saved, which helps victims from the start of an investigation through court proceedings and beyond.

MORE THAN 300 ARRESTED IN CALIFORNIA’S TRENDING Crackdown on CHILD EXPLOITATION CRIMES

Callahan Walsh of the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children warns that financial sextortion targeting teens has reached unprecedented levels since COVID, with devastating consequences. (Stepheny Price/Fox News Digital)

He also praised support from police leaders and organizations that provide tools to help detectives identify victims online.

Sullivan supervises Aurora’s Internet Crimes Against Children team, as well as its traffic detectives. The teams investigate separate crimes, including sextortion, but their work may overlap.

The department said the anti-trafficking unit relies on local, state and federal partnerships, as well as investigative resources through the Colorado Cyber ​​Guardian Task Force.

Threats also transcend geographic and economic boundaries.

When asked if Tren de Aragua (TdA) had been involved in the trafficking his team investigated, Sullivan said his unit had not encountered that connection.

His broader point was that exploitation can affect people from all walks of life.

Sullivan described another high school student who came from a wealthier background but became vulnerable after her mother suffered a debilitating medical crisis and her father was absent. The girl became addicted to drugs and was exploited by someone else, he said.

FBI AND TEXAS AUTHORITIES ARREST 276 SUSPECTED CHILD PREDATORS AND RESCUE 89 CHILDREN DURING SWEEP OPERATION

“There’s really no limit to where we see victims,” Sullivan said.

Investigators regularly work with other agencies, especially when victims travel interstate.

“It’s a problem in every community across the country, whether it’s a big city or a small town,” he added.

For parents, Sullivan’s advice starts with staying involved and asking questions about what their children are doing online.

Warning signs can include unexplained cash, new clothes or paid manicures, as well as disappearing for a weekend and returning with things they didn’t have before. He encouraged families to use the educational resources of the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children.

Some investigations remain stalled while detectives wait for additional information, Sullivan said. Survivors may not be ready to come forward or may not recognize themselves as victims, making it more difficult to move a case forward.

A human trafficking operation in Florida resulted in the arrest of 228 people. (Polk County Sheriff’s Office)

As the unit enters its second year, its priorities remain identifying victims and building cases against those who exploit them.

Public information can help detectives reach people more quickly, he said.

“We don’t refuse any tips,” Sullivan said.

He also urged people who are victims of exploitation to seek help even if they are not ready to participate in a criminal investigation. Advocacy organizations can help without involving police, he said.

CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE FOX NEWS APP

For detectives, the mission continues beyond an arrest: working with partners to meet the traffickers’ needs to gain control in the first place.

“Bringing in a group of people to help identify those needs and address them is kind of the goal and the key to our success,” Sullivan said.