Fox News Investigates wrote a recent article highlighting the tragedy of Human Trafficking in the United States. Written by Perry Chiaramonte and Andrew Keiper, published on May 18th, 2019, this article focuses on the exploitation of children in the US, and how they get trapped in the undertow of the epidemic known as human trafficking.

“Her story began like so many others, with an exploitation of trust.

Edie Rhea is a survivor of sex trafficking. Her formative years were largely spent being sold for sex by her mother’s boyfriend. It began when she was 10 and lasted until she was 17 years old.

‘He really did take on that daddy-figure role,’ Rhea said. ‘Then at 10 started sexually abusing me and trafficking me. That literally wrecked my world, my whole life.’

Rhea’s story is unique to her, and no two trafficking stories are identical – but there are common threads that exist among most survivors. Often, traffickers prey on the vulnerabilities of young teenagers who face troubles at home.

‘Most of the victims are folks that are in such a vulnerable position they are not able to make their own decisions,’ William Sweeney, the assistant director in charge of the FBI’s New York bureau, said. ‘It’s often targeting the most vulnerable in society.'”

Follow the link to read more: https://www.foxnews.com/us/undertow-of-exploitation-how-teens-get-trapped-in-human-trafficking