A joint investigation by police forces across the province has resulted in more than a dozen charges in a case in which a woman was trafficked from Toronto all the way to Saskatchewan.
RCMP outlined the investigation in a news release Tuesday.
Around 5:15 a.m. on Oct. 23, Saskatoon RCMP were called to a Dundurn business for a reported kidnapping.
RCMP officers responded and found an Ontario woman inside the business. Investigation revealed that the woman was being held against her will.
Sask. The RCMP Human Trafficking and Counter Exploitation Unit (HTCEU) was contacted and an investigation began.
HTCEU investigators determined that the woman was forcibly taken from Toronto and trafficked in various locations in Ontario, Manitoba and Saskatchewan.
As a result of the investigation, a 51-year-old man from Chambly, Que. has been charged with 14 crimes.
They include:
- one count, human trafficking
- one point: human trafficking – material benefit
- one count, forcible confinement
- One count, assault, section 271
- one count, assault with another weapon
- one count: material gain from sexual services
- one count, obtaining sexual services for money
- two counts, procurement
- one count, making threats against a person
- one count, assault with weapon
- One point: failure to comply with the probation order
- One count: identity theft
- one count, possession of property obtained by crime over $5,000
The suspect was arrested by Saskatoon police on October 23. He appeared in provincial court on October 24 and 28.
He remains in custody ahead of his next scheduled appearance on November 5.
A total of seven separate RCMP units and police forces cooperated in the investigation.
“Human trafficking affects communities of all sizes, not just urban centers. It is a reality that exists in cities large and small, including those right here at home in Saskatchewan,” Insp. Jeff Smoliak, senior investigative officer for the RCMP’s Saskatchewan Enforcement Response Teams (SERT), said in the news release.
“It is also a crime that knows no borders. That is why the Saskatchewan RCMP is working inter-jurisdictionally to investigate these complex cases and working closely with municipal police forces and partners across the country.”
RCMP offered a number of tips to help residents recognize the signs of human trafficking – reminding the public that anyone can be targeted and that victims can be trafficked by people they know, including former and current partners, family members, friends and others .
Recruitment tactics can be subtle, with many victims not even knowing they are being trafficked.
More information can be found here.