ORILLIA, Ont. - Police say a 12-year-old Winnipeg girl was among 18 people who were brought to safety during a nationwide human-trafficking investigation.
They say 33 charges have been laid against nine people, including forcible confinement, making and distributing child pornography, assault and trafficking in persons.
Twenty-six police forces were involved in Operation Northern Spotlight, including those in Toronto, Edmonton, Calgary, Regina, Saskatoon, Winnipeg, Halifax and Quebec City.
Police say hundreds of young women were interviewed during the operation, which was first launched last January and focused on hotels and motels along major thoroughfares in 30 cities and towns across the country.
During that phase of the operation, more than 340 women were interviewed and police allege many of them some as young as 15 had been threatened with violence, extortion and drug dependency, among other forms of coercion.
