Ontario cops arrest more than 100 men in child sex trafficking investigation
Over the last four years, an Ontario police force has tried to curb the practice of men paying for sex with underage girls by having undercover officers pose as child prostitutes online.
On Friday, York regional police announced that their operation, dubbed “Project Raphael,” resulted in the arrests of 104 men allegedly looking to buy sex from children.
Det. Sgt. Thai Truong, of the force’s human trafficking team, said no girls were harmed in the operation in which officers advertised sex services online as girls between the ages of 13 and 16.
Police have successfully arrested traffickers in the past who force children into the sex trade, Truong noted, but the prosecution is arduous on the victims.