BLOOMINGTON, Ill. (25News Now) - A two-day effort by Illinois State Police to stop human trafficking in the Bloomington area has resulted in charges against a half-dozen suspects accused of trying to arrange sexual encounters with minors, however just one of the six remains behind bars until their trials.
The men, including two from Bloomington, were arrested following a two-day “human trafficking demand suppression operation” on Wednesday, Jan. 8 and Thursday, Jan. 9, according to a State Police release.
45-year-old Nathan Hansen and 25-year-old David Teran are from Bloomington. They have been released from the McLean County Jail along with 21-year-old Steve Adma of Galesburg, 21-year-old Khalid Farah of Arlington Heights, and 60-year-old Larry Miller of Tolono.
Each of the men face felony counts including traveling to meet a minor, indecent solicitation, solicitation to meet a child, and grooming. 33-year-old Michael Morris of Forest City is the only suspect who remains in jail. Morris faces 10 felony charges compared to five for the others.
All of the men who have been released must comply with various conditions. Hansen and Teran have arraignments set for Jan. 24. All of the others have Jan. 31 court appearances.
In the release, authorities defined human trafficking as using “force, fraud, or coercion to compel a person into commercial sex acts, labor, or services against their will.”
The McLean County investigation included ISP special agents, ISP SWAT, Task Force 6, ISP Analysts, the Vermillion Metropolitan Enforcement Group, the East Central Illinois Drug Task Force, North Central Narcotics Task Force, and the Intelligence Support Unit.
The Illinois Department of Children and Family Services, the Bloomington Police Department, and the McLean County State’s Attorney’s Office also participated in the investigation, the ISP release said.
This story first appeared on 25news.com
