Stopping sex trafficking: Study estimates more than 100 cases in Madison County in two years

In December, a routine traffic stop on Interstate 40 in Haywood County led to the arrest of a Texas man on sex crimes involving a 16-year-old boy.

The boy was a passenger in the man’s SUV, and Trooper Brad Simpson was suspicious after they appeared nervous and gave different stories about their travels. It turned out that the boy was a runaway from Dallas who may be have been sexually assaulted in Memphis earlier that day.

According to a TBI study released last year, the case is likely evidence of a sex-trafficking problem that is growing across the country and in West Tennessee.

The study, based on surveys of police and social service agencies, estimated that there were between 1,500 and 4,000 cases of sex trafficking in Tennessee during 2009 and 2010. It estimated that there were likely more than 100 cases of adult sex trafficking in Madison County during that time and up to 50 cases of child sex trafficking.

(Jordan Buie for Jackson Sun)