Child Sex Trafficking: How do People Become Victims?
Thankfully, in light of recent high-profile cases, the world is taking Child Sex Trafficking more seriously. Therefore, with this increased awareness, I’d like to share some data about what we know about how traffickers find their victims. This knowledge will, hopefully, help with education and prevention at all levels.
Previous research has identified several types of traffickers, based on how they recruit their victims. These have been categorized in differing ways.
Some studies divide the types of traffickers into those who use an aggressive/antisocial means to recruit victims versus a charismatic/manipulative means. Other researchers put traffickers into categories like:
- Romantic boyfriend
- Gang member
- Relatives
- Those who specifically prey on children with intellectual disabilities
Child Sex Trafficking: Types of Traffickers
Boyfriend/Girlfriend Recruitment
These traffickers present themselves as caring and compassionate friends.
They often offer to help the victim escape an abusive situation or home; they exploit these vulnerabilities of the victim. These traffickers might be someone posing as a boyfriend or the actual romantic partner of the victim.
Peer-to-Peer Recruitment
Some victims of sex trafficking are recruited by other victims of sex trafficking.
This may seem very counter intuitive. The research suggests that peer sex trafficking is often done unwillingly under actual or threatened abuse. Alternatively, this is sometimes seen as a survival strategy where a victim recruits another victim thinking, “Better them than me.”
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Gang/Criminal Recruitment
Many victims of sex trafficking are aggressively recruited by gang members.
Often these victims are young women who have a drug habit that is exploited or are convinced to enter prostitution to help the gang by being love bombed by the trafficker.
Family Trafficking
Both mothers and fathers have been known to traffic their children for various reasons.
Family trafficking can also involve other family members. Research has shown that mothers with drug addictions are most often seen in this category.
By identifying the different tactics used by various types of traffickers, public education and youth education can happen to try to prevent trafficking from the inception, before a child becomes a victim.
Child Sex Trafficking: Sub-Types of Perpetrator
A study published in 2023 in the scientific journal, Victims & Offenders, sought to further the research on child sex trafficking by describing recruitment strategies used by perpetrators.
The goal of this study is to inform prevention education and interventions.
The study reviewed 78 Child Protective Investigation case files in the state of Florida.
The study found 7 distinct subtypes of perpetrator of Child Sex Trafficking:
- Peer/Acquaintance
- Organized Crime
- Romantic Coercive Conman
- “Mate” crime predator
- Family Abuser
- Opportunistic Trafficker
- Cybertrafficker
Peer/Acquaintance Trafficker
Maybe a neighbor, classmate, friend, etc. Uses peer recruitment, often via social media to find youth in their geographic area. The child is then groomed by being offered drugs, gifts or basic needs such as food or shelter. Grooming also includes building a friendship and normalizing commercial sexual exploitation.
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Organized Crime Child Sex Trafficking
Uses peer to peer recruitment. Finds youth in areas known for drugs and illegal activities. Child is groomed by being offered drugs and providing basic needs. Uses violence and intimidation when the child ends up paying for the “gifts” with sex.
Family Abuser
This person exploits their own young family members for either profit or to support a drug habit. The victim often lives with the abuser.
Romantic Coercive Conman
This trafficker is often seen as a boyfriend by the victim. They find victims by chatting online with girls on social media and dating apps. They will also go to places where girls frequent in person. The victims are groomed using romance and gift giving. They are also groomed with charm and often alcohol and drugs. The victim is then isolated from friends and family.
Mate Crime Predator
This trafficker preys upon the most vulnerable youth they can find. These are often youth with intellectual disabilities, mental health issues or physical disabilities. The victims are groomed with friendship. Traffickers often find these victims in places where you find run away children or using peer to peer recruitment via foster care or social media. Victims are groomed with basic needs or drugs and alcohol. This type of trafficker often also uses physically abusive tactics.
If you’re unfamiliar with sextortion, check out Dr. Jen’s article How to Protect Your Child from Sextortion.
Opportunistic Child Sex Trafficking
These traffickers often meet youth at places like truck stops or other places run away youth are to be found. They can then take advantage of the child’s specific vulnerability and groom them with offers of food, shelter, transportation and drugs or alcohol.
Cybertrafficker
This trafficker only interacts with victims online. The victims are found mostly on social media and dating apps. The trafficker befriends them and often promises money in exchange for sexual images and videos. They often then blackmail victims by threatening to disseminate the sexual images of the child.
Child Sex Trafficking Prevention
For prevention efforts to be successful, they need to be in place at all levels of the behavior.
By identifying the different tactics used by various types of traffickers, public education and youth education can happen to try to prevent trafficking from the inception, before a child becomes a victim.
Reference
Reid, J., Bilali, K., Fox, B. & Diaz, J. (2023). Toward a Typology of Child Sex Traffickers: Using Crime Script Analysis to Inform Prevention, Victims & Offenders., 18:3, 423-446. DOI: 10/1080/15564886.2022.2149648.
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