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Bay County Sheriff's Office Sheds Light on Human Trafficking and Financial Crimes in Community
LYNN HAVEN, FL - Corporal Amy Burnette and Corporal Krista Chastain from Bay County Sheriff’s Office spoke at the Lynn Haven Heritage Society meeting at Roberts Hall on January 4th, 2024. Their topic was human trafficking and financial crimes in Bay County. As Epstein documents concerning human trafficking hit the mainstream media, It’s hard to fathom how our quiet little community on the emerald coast could also be home to such heinous crimes. Corporals Burnette and Chastain explained what to look out for and how to protect yourselves.
Corporal Burnette works for the Domestic Violence and Human Trafficking unit. She explained human trafficking can take the form of labor or sex trafficking. Both forms are unfortunately found in Bay County.
In the case of labor trafficking, people are recruited from other countries such as Jamaica or Russia (Corporal Burnette’s examples) under false pretenses. They are promised freedom and all the wonderful things the United States has to offer. However, when they arrive here, they are enslaved in labor trafficking. They are forced to work and turn over their money to their coyotes or someone else. Typically, they live together in a house with 40 or 50 other trafficked people and are transported together to their jobs. They may not speak English or have a passport. They are unable to communicate their situation to others or run away. Bay county residents should be aware and contact the Sheriff’s office if they see this pattern going on.
Sexual trafficking can involve children or adults. This is different from prostitution in that these victims cannot or did not give their consent. They are coerced or enslaved in their situation. In the case of a child or minor, they don't have the ability to give their consent. Both forms of trafficking are prevalent in Bay County. Our beaches and tourism industry attracts this crime. Corporal Burnette says please know what your children are doing online.
She gave the example of a recent arrest in Bay County of a man allegedly kidnapping a woman in Dothan and forcing her into human trafficking. She also mentioned a case involving Michael Harrison Hunt in 2019. For more information on these crimes see links below.
Corporal Chastain works in the Financial Crimes Division and says financial crimes or scams on Bay County citizens has increased from one million dollars in 2021 to two million dollars last year. She discussed several scams to be aware of so that you do not fall victim to these scammers.
First and foremost, beware of anyone trying to encourage you to invest or pay them in Bitcoin. Usually the dialog is “I turned 1000 dollars into 10,000 dollars.” One scammed Bay County citizen went so far as to download a fraudulent app from the Apple Store and deposited their money in it.
A second Bay County citizen tried to purchase a car online from HB Auto Sales. They looked up the dealer online and found they had a real address on a Google map so they thought they were dealing with a legitimate business. Unfortunately, it did not turn out that way.
Corporal Chastain explained that 85 percent of financial crime is organized crime and they are very good at what they do. You may give away more information than you realize in a phone call with one of these scammers so hang up and do not engage. Also, Facebook takeovers can make you believe you are talking to someone you know while it’s actually a scammer with knowledge of your personal information, also possibly found on your Facebook page. Other social media apps can be used in this manner as well.
Another common scam is the warrant scam. Someone may call and say you missed jury duty and there is a warrant out for your arrest, but you can pay the fine now and avoid it.
The money mule scam is another common scam. Perhaps someone calls you and says that you won some cash. When they send you a check, it's for a much larger amount “by mistake” and they ask you to cash it and take out your portion and send them the remainder. You have just helped launder money. Don’t participate.
Another crime making a comeback is illegal check cashing. Checks are stolen from mail boxes and cashed with the amount changed to a larger amount.
Corporal Champlain addressed several things you can do to avoid these scams. If you are sending a check in the mail, mail it at the post office. Beware of any caller who doesn't want to let you off the phone, or asks you to pay with gift cards or Bitcoin. If the person says they are from a government agency, ask for a name, badge number, or employee ID, look up that office online and call and verify the individual. Limit social media access to friends you know. Avoid answering phone numbers you do not know. Credit cards are safer to use online rather than debit cards as they aren’t linked to your bank account. Also, credit cards usually have a fraud reimbursement policy. Touch payment with card chips are safer than swiping strips on cards. Delete cookies on your computer often to prevent access to passwords you may have used. Use bookmarks on your computer to mark websites you use frequently, rather than leaving them open. Other tips to avoid being scammed are available on the government website, IdentityTheft.gov.
Corporals Burnette and Champlain are dynamic speakers and give out valuable information. Anyone hosting an educational event and would like to schedule these speakers, contact Ruth Corley in Public Relations at the Bay County Sheriff's Office.
https://www.wjhg.com/2023/09/13/man-found-guilty-panama-city-murder-shooting/
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