Chairperson Butler
Members of the Committee
Good afternoon and thank you for your time. My name is Ryan Chrysler. I am a Sergeant with the Columbus Division of Police. I am currently assigned as the Director of the Ohio Organized Crime Human Trafficking Task Force.
I will cut straight to my testimony regarding my experiences as a human trafficking investigator and how I see House Bill 283 playing a role.
Human trafficking touches many different crimes, but primarily prostitution. Those who interact with prostitutes are more comfortable outside of societal norms. They seek immediate satisfaction. They seek anonymity. They want to arrive and leave without detection. They want their secret kept.
Prostitutes are seen as criminals. Johns, or customers, think they are safe from law enforcement for this reason…and for this reason – some of the most evil people in our society build up their courage in this environment.
• Just this past August, a man from Minnesota, Corwin Moose, was looking to pay for sex. He contacted an escort ad – which alluded to sex for money. This particular ad came back to a sixteen year old girl. He met her, gave her $80 for sex and left. She was a victim of human trafficking. An investigative team rescued her and took her phone. The next time Moose contacted the girl’s phone – police began interacting with him. Another date was set, only this time he was arrested. Police discovered that Moose brought a large empty suitcase with him, rubber gloves and a new tarp lining the floor of his trunk. The date was settled for $100 – which he did not have on him when he was arrested.
• This past spring, in Pontiac Michigan, a former football coach at Notre Dame Marist Academy responded to a Craigslist ad offering “adult services”. Yes – prostitution still exists on Craigslist, it’s just hidden a little better. While talking to the prostitute, he heard a girl crying in the background. He asked about the girl, who was the prostitute’s six year old daughter. Without hesitation he asked how much it would cost to have sex with the six year old. This guy KNEW he was talking to a prostitute, so he felt he was “safe”. He offered $200 to have sex with the child, and asked if the little girl had ever touched (male genitalia)? The mom contacted police, who involved the FBI. The man was arrested when he arrived at a local hotel for the date.
The stories go on-and-on. Federal Investigators in Providence RI arrested 8 men for soliciting sex with a 14 year old. The girl was under pimp control and advertised on Backpage.com. There were also Facebook messages linking dates and prices to specific clients. Police worked the messages backwards in their investigation which led to the arrests. Let me explain to you that Backpage.com escort ads do not advertise specifics. They do not advertise juveniles. They do no advertise sex. They mask it in code. This girl was encountered as an adult prostitute, discovered by the johns to be a juvenile and then exploited further through social media between the perverted men’s friends.
Does this happen in Ohio? Does it happen right here in this city? Yes, it does. I currently have three active investigations going. One suspect in particular became upset with our investigator over a particular issue, slowing the investigation down considerably. Any guess why he was upset? We mistakenly offered him a 6 year old girl in conversation. Make believe of course. He was upset that it wasn’t a boy.
How does this relate to this House Bill? In all three cases, the tipster was a prostitute who was interacting with a client. Each felt a line had been crossed and she reported him.
This bill will save lives.
This bill will reveal the monsters that walk among us.
This bill will protect our women and children.
Thank you for your time.