Article by Stephanie Overton, 8 News Now

LAS VEGAS (KLAS) — Police arrested more than 70 people and identified more than 200 victims in a sex trafficking operation during the Las Vegas Grand Prix.

In November, Las Vegas police focused on educating hundreds of workers at casinos, hospitals, airlines, hotels, and nightclubs, as well as the members of multiple community groups on how to spot human trafficking victims.

“The reality is human and sex trafficking happens in our city every day,” Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department Deputy Chief Nicholas Farese said at a briefing Tuesday.

The LVMPD committed the full resources of the Vice section to “target those who prey on the vulnerable” during a sex trafficking operation that took place during the week of the Las Vegas Grand Prix.

Deputy Chief Farese said that while the effort was focused on the resort corridor, the LVMPD made arrests throughout the valley as part of the operation.

“It’s occurring in our neighborhoods beyond the Strip,” Captain of Gangs, Vice, and Special Investigations Bureau Hector Cintron said.

During the operation, the LVMPD partnered with R.I.S.E. (The Resources and Integration for Survivor Empowerment program) to set up a vice operations center that ran 24 hours a day for a week.

The operation was run under a victim-centered approach. In this style of approach, victim advocates respond with LVMPD to scenes in order to connect with victims and immediately offer services and resources, according to Captain Cintron.

“Some of these victims may not even view themselves as victims,” Cintron said.

During the operation, Las Vegas police located five juveniles who were believed to be victims of sex trafficking. Deputy Chief Farese said the juveniles were reported as runaways who were then preyed upon by sex traffickers.

In total, police identified 215 victims and, with the help of R.I.S.E and victim advocates, offered them services such as emergency housing and legal protection from their trafficker.

Of those 215 victims, only 21 people accepted the service.

“We don’t look at it as being frustrating. We look at it as a huge win on our end,” R.I.S.E. CEO Kimberly Small said. “We do this on a daily basis. So when we see victims that want to follow up, we see that as a win. Each and every time we see it as a win, no matter how many.”

During the operation, police arrested more than 70 people for various sex-related crimes. Of those arrested, 36 were for sex trafficking, 31 for soliciting sex, and seven for luring a child/soliciting a minor.

Read the full article.