South Central Reporter

Several arrests were made during a late June anti-human trafficking operation by the Illinois State Police. In an Aug. 15 Facebook post, Rep. Mike Coffey cheered the efforts of the officers.

"The Illinois State Police know Human Trafficking is active in Illinois and they are making arrests," Coffey said on Facebook. "We need our law enforcement to help protect children throughout our communities. Keep up the great work"

Coffey shared a link to an ABC20 piece about an anti-human trafficking operation in Springfield that resulted in eight arrests. The news outlet said: “Between August 9-10 the ISP Division of Criminal Investigation Trafficking Enforcement Bureau led a human trafficking suppression operation focused on identifying individuals seeking to engage in commercial sex acts with minors.” Individuals between the ages of 28 and 52 were arrested on charges that included Traveling to Meet a Minor, Sexual Exploitation of a Child and Indecent Solicitation of a Child.

The Aug. 8-9 event isn’t the only anti-human trafficking operation that ISP has taken part in this year. An Illinois State Police news release notes that “…[between] June 22-23, 2023, the ISP Division of Criminal Investigation Trafficking Enforcement Bureau and the Metropolitan Enforcement Group of Southwestern Illinois led a human trafficking suppression operation focused on identifying individuals seeking to engage in commercial sex acts with minors. “ISP has a responsibility to protect those vulnerable to human trafficking, forced labor, and sexual servitude. The arrests of these individuals serve as notice to anyone who thinks about feeding the demand for human trafficking that ISP could be waiting behind a door for them with handcuffs,” said ISP Director Brendan F. Kelly.

In the June 28-29 operation, KSDK.com reported that the men from Missouri and Illinois were charged with a variety of counts focused on trafficking children, solicitation of a child, solicitation of a sexual act, traveling to meet a child, grooming, and others.

Mike Coffey was sworn into office to represent the people of the 95th District in January 2023. He is a lifelong Springfield resident, a business owner, and is active in a variety of community boards and organizations. He graduated from the University of Illinois in 1992 with a degree in political science and joined the family business. He opened Papa Frank’s in Springfield in 2015.