EAGLE, Idaho — Human trafficking can happen in any neighborhood. Even here in Eagle. I'm your Eagle neighborhood reporter, Alexander Huddleston, and I told you last week about the three people who are now facing charges of human trafficking and running a prostitution operation out of this Eagle massage parlor. Now I'm sitting down with the Idaho Anti-Trafficking Coalition to learn about their efforts to stop the stigma.
"The biggest stigma we are dealing with right now is calling these individuals prostitutes," exclaimed Executive Director Jennifer Zielinski.
As we previously reported, three people are facing serious criminal charges in Ada County after search warrants at a private home and Head to Toe Massage Therapy in Eagle led to arrests on January 16.
I was there as officers collected evidence, which they say included items and rooms that align with allegations made that the business was running a sex trafficking operation. In the arraignment, Deputy Prosecuting Attorney Austin Payne said, "The area was described by law enforcement as worse than a jail cell."
I asked neighbors and nearby business owners about interactions with the suspects, and none ever saw anything unusual. Zielinski says that's common.
"The problem is that it does look like everyday business," shrugged Zielinski.
But it's happening more often than you might realize.
The Director continued, "Last year, we assisted 227 victims and survivors of human trafficking, and that's in the state of Idaho."
Zielinski says their biggest role is assisting survivors but spreading awareness about who these victims are and how they can be misrepresented follows closely behind.
"These are individuals who are not choosing commercial sex acts or sex work as their business. They are not the ones profiting from this. When we talk about human trafficking, we are talking about criminals who are forcing individuals into the commercial sex trade or some kind of labor act," added Zielinski.
But if everything looks normal from the outside, how can people know what happens behind closed doors?
Zielinski explained, "It's important to recognize the actual business structure. If businesses have padlocks on their doors, or their blinds are always closed, or maybe they force people in through the back to be very discrete. Or they only tailor their business to men and not allow women into the business; that's a red flag. If we see businesses where the workers are not coming and going, that means they are living in the establishment, and oftentimes they are raising children there as well."
Ada County says they are still investigating the situation in Eagle, and anyone with information is urged to contact detectives.
The three defendants charged in the recent investigation are expected to return to court on January 29.
