Seminar on human trafficking scheduled for Thursday

A seminar scheduled for Thursday morning will look at the problem of human trafficking and how it can be avoided in southern Missouri.

The Human Trafficking Investigation Seminar begins at 9 a.m. at Doubletree Hotel in north Springfield. The program features Cynthia L. Cordes, human trafficking coordinator and assistant U. S. attorney for the Western District of Missouri; Paul R. Schlup, special investigator for the Cole County State Prosecutor's Office; Carrie Rosetti of the Kansas City Alliance Against Human Trafficking; Tim Thomason of the Columbia Police Department; and Kendall Seal of Legal Services of Southern Missouri.

According to a news release from event sponsor Legal Services of Southern Missouri, human trafficking is tied with illegal weapon sales as the second-largest criminal industry in the world, and it is the fastest-growing. The U.S. State Department estimates that up to 2 million people are trafficked worldwide each year, including up to 18,000 in the United States.

Human trafficking involves the buying, selling and smuggling of people, who are forced into modern-day slavery. Victims, according to the release, usually are coerced into work as domestic servants, manual laborers or sex workers.

Thursday's seminar costs $15, including lunch, and is open to the public.[[In-content Ad]]