Cracking down on human trafficking

CHATTANOOGA, Tennessee(WDEF) – The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation launched a new outreach campaign to raise awareness about Human sex trafficking.

It’s called "It Has to Stop" and it’s a website launched by the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation.

TBI recently received approval to launch the launch the site when lawmakers on both sides of the aisle voted unanimously in favor of the program.

"First and foremost, what were doing is making sure that states have money to fight this, and we have cyber tips. We need to make sure the victims get the treatment they need," said U.S. Representative  Chuck Fleischmann.

"Human trafficking is something most people don’t know that really exist and it’s a huge problem not just in Tennessee but in America itself," said State Senator Todd Gardenhire.

According to TBI data, one in four runaway children are approached by sex traffickers with 48-hours of leaving home; and that child will likely remain enslaved as a prostitute for at least four years. The data also show that a person is bought or sold for sex every two minutes in the US. In Hamilton County alone, there were more than 100 reported cases of human sex trafficking with half of those cases involving children back in 2011.  

"This can not be tolerated. This is a abusive. It’s a tragedy. It’s morally wrong and it needs to be fought globally," Fleischmann said.