Crackdown on sexual exploitation nets 39 arrests

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This article was published 06/09/2019 (2407 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

A summer-long crackdown on sexual exploitation that targeted customers has led to 39 arrests.

From June 16 to Aug. 31, the Winnipeg Police Service counter exploitation unit’s Project Guardian went after those who exploit the vulnerable and underaged — some as young as 13 — for sexual services.

“This was a proactive project that really targeted the demand side,” Sgt. Rick McDougall with the counter exploitation unit said Friday at a police press conference.

“A lot of offenders believe that they’re assisting (the victims) — that they’re providing them with funds for food and shelter when in reality they’re inflicting more harm.”–Sgt. Rick McDougall 

Police conducted 38 stops under a program called Deter and Identify Sex-trade Consumers (DISC), using the Highway Traffic Act to pull over motorists in parts of Winnipeg’s West End and North End known for sexual exploitation. Officers let the customers know the harm they’re doing and McDougall said it appears to be working.

“The deterring factor of a DISC stop is huge from a law enforcement and harm reduction perspective,” McDougall said, noting it’s rare that someone subject to a DISC stop is stopped twice once they’ve been singled out and told the harm they’re inflicting.

“A lot of offenders believe that they’re assisting (the victims) — that they’re providing them with funds for food and shelter when in reality they’re inflicting more harm,” he said. “Many of these people they’re exploiting don’t choose to be there.”

Many are suffering already from addictions, unreported assaults, the trauma of being exploited and previous trauma that’s exacerbated every time they’re exploited, as well as the associated health hazards, he said.

McDougall said 34 people were arrested for street sexual exploitation and released on a promise to appear. At court, they may be diverted to the “prostitution offender program”, formerly referred to as “john school.”

Another five people were arrested for online sexual exploitation, a much larger problem that’s tougher to battle, said McDougall.

“There’s been huge shift to the online exploitation,” he said.

“The five arrests don’t fully illustrate the shift to online exploitation,” he said. The complexities of arresting customers using online platforms to sexual exploit victims require a lot of time and resources, McDougall said. “The online area is continually evolving and changing and we have to adapt to that new world.”

Project Guardian also made nine contacts with outreach agencies, conducted four educational presentations by members of the Counter Exploitation Unit, issued six provincial offence act violations in areas known for sexual exploitation and generated 10 intelligence reports for further investigation

carol.sanders@freepress.mb.ca