ORILLIA, Ont. — Police say a human trafficking investigation in rural Ontario has led them to 10 alleged victims — seven who are underage — and investigators believe there may be more.
Ontario Provincial Police say they have laid more than two dozen charges against a 58-year-old man from Oro-Medonte, Ont., including four charges of human trafficking.
Insp. Tina Chalk says human trafficking is not just a big city issue, but is occurring in small towns across the province, where the alleged victim is forced to have sex for money, which is kept by the trafficker.
She says the OPP has laid 35 human trafficking-related charges since the beginning of 2016.
Chalk says the alleged victims are taken throughout the province wherever there is a demand for prostitution.
Isaac "Ike" Crooks faces 26 charges that include counts of human trafficking and sexual assault.
"Once someone has been lured with promises of love or a better life, they are often transported from community to community, isolated from family or friends and every movement and action controlled by the trafficker," Chalk said at a news conference.
Police say Crooks remains in custody pending a bail hearing on May 8.
