By: Nyah Adams / News Director

The Central Minnesota Human Trafficking Task Force is expanding after receiving a two-year $575,000 grant.

The money will expand resources through local, state and federal coordination in investigating and prosecuting sex traffickers along with providing services and support for adults and children being exploited in Stearns County and across Central Minnesota.

The Minnesota Office of Justice and its joint partners recognize that sex trafficking is a clear and present danger that significantly affects public safety in Central Minnesota.

The trafficking task force has already had great success in the past by using modern practices in investigating and detecting crimes that have resulted in receiving over 350 tips, investigating over 100 cases, charging 44 felonies and providing support to at least 239 separate trafficking victims since the start of the task force in 2018.