Georgia Attorney General confirms human trafficking unit coming to Augusta

AUGUSTA, Ga. (WRDW/WAGT) – Augusta has become a hotspot in the southeast for human trafficking.

And Monday — Georgia Attorney General Chris Carr spoke with News 12 on a new human trafficking prosecution unit expansion in Richmond County.

Since its creation in 2019 — the unit has only had one Atlanta based team.

Starting on May 1 there will be a new team, Carr says, that are highly trained and skilled when it comes to human trafficking.

Joining the Augusta team are two local investigators, William Loomer and Patrick Brown, along with Prosecutor Megan Adams.

The team won’t just work the major roadways like I-20 — they will be online too in hopes of creating an environment where traffickers live in fear, but victims understand help is coming to more cities than just Augusta.

“We are going to have offices not only in Augusta, but in Macon and Atlanta,” Carr said. “I think the strategic point there is because human trafficking is so often a very transit-oriented type horrific industry, where today you may be in Atlanta and tomorrow Macon and the next day you may be in Augusta. This allows us to cover I-75, I-85, I-16 and I-20. So we have the major arteries in the state that we will now have a presence.”

Kari Viola- Brooke with Child Enrichment sees trafficking victims daily and says this will put more eyes in the community to help identify the number of growing cases.

“This is something we’ve been advocating for years, it feels like,” Viola-Brooke explains. “A couple years ago, we had the most confirmed cases of child sex trafficking in the state of Georgia, and we knew that we needed a more dedicated response to be able to combat this. We’re so appreciative of the Attorney General’s Office for not only recognizing this, but taking action, and I think it’s just going to make us a much safer community.”

All of this kicks off on May 1 and Attorney General Carr says with the expansion to Augusta and Macon they feel not only will this help reach more victims, but their hope is they can continue to grow the expansions across the state.

You can read the full release here.

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