Aurora police trafficking unit reports 29 survivors recovered, 28 arrests in first year

Right · 2The Aurora Police Department's Human Trafficking Unit opened 53 investigations, arrested 28 suspects and recovered 29 survivors, including 15 minors, in its first year. 1 2 Right · 2The unit was created in September 2025 and has three detectives and a supervising sergeant; its focus is sex trafficking involving people 21 and younger. 1 2 Right · 2APD Sgt. Joseph Sullivan told Fox News Digital that traffickers turn children's hunger, desperation and need for affection into tools of exploitation, and that the problem is local: "It is happening in our backyard, not just in those other places." 1 2

Right · 2Sullivan said trafficking often differs from abductions portrayed in movies: a trafficker identifies a need such as housing, food, money or affection and uses it to gain access. 1 2 Right · 2He described a 16-year-old girl who was brought to Aurora by her boyfriend, who then left her; she was sexually exploited around an apartment complex in exchange for shelter, drugs or food, asked a detective to find those responsible, and died of an overdose a few months later, Sullivan said. 1 2 Right · 2Sullivan also described a high school student from a wealthier background who became vulnerable after her mother suffered a disabling medical crisis and her father was absent; she became addicted to drugs and was exploited, he said. 1 2

Right · 2Among those arrested is Marshae Wheelock, 24, of Aurora, whom police linked to multiple cases allegedly involving the exploitation of children over several years; the department also detailed a February undercover operation in which a 16-year-old girl was recovered and three suspects were later identified. 1 2 Right · 2APD Investigations Bureau Cmdr. Marc Paolino said in a department release that the unit was built to put survivors at the center of investigations and had made the community safer, and Deputy Chief Mark Hildebrand called Wheelock the type of offender the unit was created to investigate. 1 2 Right · 2The department works with human services officials, nonprofits and victim advocates, including the local group From Silence to Saved, and draws on local, state and federal partnerships and the Colorado Cyber Guardian Task Force. 1 2

Right · 2Asked about Tren de Aragua, Sullivan said his unit had not encountered that connection, and he said victims come from all backgrounds. 1 2 Right · 2Sullivan said some investigations are stalled because survivors may not be ready to come forward or may not recognise themselves as victims, and that survivors may need repeated contact before they can leave exploitation. 1 2 Right · 2His advice to parents is to stay involved and ask about children's online activity; warning signs he listed include unexplained cash, new clothes or paid-for manicures, and disappearing for a weekend. He said the unit accepts all tips and that people can seek help from advocacy groups without involving police. 1 2