TBI: 42 arrested in Memphis prostitution sting; local expert weighs in

MEMPHIS, Tenn. — A sting operation conducted by the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation resulted in human trafficking charges against 42 people.

One of those arrests includes a man from Humboldt.

The TBI held a press conference Friday in Memphis to talk about the investigation, called “Operation Someone Like Me.”

Special agents posted four ads a day for soliciting sex during the investigation  on a website called backpage.com.

In total, 475 men responded to those ads.

Eight of those men paid to have sex with what they thought was an underage girl.

“This was the 8th time we have run this operation in our state,” TBI Director Mark Gwyn said. “Every time we do this, I become more convinced of the need to address this kind of issue and this kind of crime.”

One local organization is trying to combat human trafficking right here in Jackson.

Julanne Stone said the Scarlet Rope Project started two years ago with a couple investigators from the police department.

“They were arresting the women for prostitution and soon realized that these women were not criminals — that they were victims themselves,” Stone said.

The program has already helped 12 women escape the bondage of sex trafficking.

“It’s hard. It’s heartbreaking at times because there are women that can come in our program and they can leave and just walk out on us,” she said. “But we just keep on going, because we see the women that are in the program that are fighting, and we see the changes that are happening in their life, so that’s what keeps us going.”

According to the TBI, those charged during “Operation Someone Like Me” in Memphis include: