Mission Report 51525
The Quest ECSS
Human Trafficking
Location:
Boarder crossing
Controlled:
Transporters of new children.
Situation: Received call notifying me of priority rescue. 14 girls in back of a covered truck. They were crossing the border and being transported to a child brothel. We often monitor borders for this specific reason. These trafficking vehicles are relatively easy to identify, and at this stage the girls have not yet been sold. Typically these transporters operate without security escorts – usually freelancers who gather children for this purpose before selling them to brothel owners. These sellers commonly stop for food or restroom breaks at border areas. This particular transporter did exactly that, allowing one of our 4 team members to approach and inspect the truck while another maintained surveillance. She looked inside and counted 14 girls, approximately 8 to 13 years old. They were bound together and secured to the truck floor. She signaled the girls with a finger-to-lips gesture indicating silence, then winked reassuringly. These children, not yet processed into brothels, still maintain their mental awareness. This can result in either cooperative or unpredictable behavior, which is why we always use female team members for initial contact. She then rejoined the other team members. The situation involved only one driver without assistants or security. One team member entered the outdoor restaurant to monitor him while others developed the response plan.
Plan: They briefed me on the situation. I established the chain of command and gave approval. The team member observing the driver would quietly maintain distraction and take necessary measures to prevent him from noticing our rescue operation. One team member would secure and remove the truck while others maintained surveillance. As the truck departed, two additional team members would follow on motorcycles to ensure no pursuit occurred. I arranged a secure meeting location where they could properly inform the children about the situation and conduct preliminary medical assessments before proceeding further. I also identified safe housing for them. Once they were en route, the driver would be sedated and that team member would rejoin the others at the checkpoint, after which they would proceed to the new housing location.
Execution: The operation proceeded according to plan except for connectivity issues I experienced due to my location, requiring me to transfer operational control to my designated commander. I was able to text her the necessary location information and received confirmation when the operation was successfully completed. The entire rescue proceeded smoothly and efficiently.
Result:
Rescued: 14
Previous total: 3558
Grand Total: 3557