Polk County Sheriff’s Office said a weeklong undercover human trafficking operation in Polk County busted 213 suspects and rescued 24 possible human trafficking victims. The operations started on February 6 and involved nine other law enforcement agencies.
Fox News reported the arrested suspects were charged with 68 felonies and 308 misdemeanors. Sheriff Grady Judd said the incident has one of the highest numbers of victims they’ve rescued.
Officials said among the 213 arrested suspects, 89 of those were soliciting a prostitute, and 14 suspects were apprehended as being in the U.S. illegally – one from Mexico and 13 from Cuba. They also arrested 13 other suspects – 10 either got money from the prostitutes or aided and abetted them. They also seized cocaine, fentanyl, marijuana, and methamphetamine from the operation.
Among the arrests is Dr. Scott Wooden, an elected Del Mar Union School District official and a molecular biologist. Judd said Dr. Wooden was in town helping elderly parents when he attempted to hire a sex worker for $200. Cristopher Pitasi was also arrested during the operation. Pitasi is a sex offender and has decades of arrests related to inappropriate sexual behavior and prostitution, reports Fox 35 Orlando.
More than 200 individuals were arrested in the human trafficking bust in Polk County, Florida, including an elected school official. (Photo: NBC 2)
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The 24 potential victims were identified from the 111 prostitutes arrested, and six were identified as illegal residents.
The suspected victims were trafficked into the U.S. through the Mexican border, where they were forced into sex work. Judd said the victims were likely refugees traveling through Central America, but met with a “coyote,” a human smuggler, and were told they’d helped with travel. The women were threatened to engage in prostitution to pay off their debt or harm their families back home. The victims were provided with counseling and assistance.
Officials said they are continuing the investigation on how, where, and who first offered the victims’ trip across the border.
To learn more about recognizing human trafficking in the Tampa Bay area, visit the One More Child site.
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