Early the morning of December 19, three teens from Guatemala were rescued by Richland Hills Police from a suspected human trafficking group in Tarrant County. The teens, ages 17, 18, and 19, were found during a traffic stop.
The driver and front-seat passenger have been identified by Richland Hills police as Jorge Martinez Jimenez, 34, and Jose Leonel Flores, 45. Both suspects face human trafficking, as well as other, charges.
According to the police report, the events began around 12:40 a.m. Sunday morning, when Richland Hills police made a routine traffic stop due to a violation in the 3400 block of Booth Calloway Road. Allegedly, neither the driver of the vehicle nor its four passengers were carrying identification, and none could speak English, said the Richland Hills police.
During the stop, the officer noticed that the three young men in the backseat of the car seemed especially nervous, prompting the officer to probe further. A Spanish-speaking officer then helped determine that the three young men were potentially all victims of human labor trafficking.
The two adults were arrested and taken into custody.
The victims were taken to the police station, where they were provided food, said Richland Hills police in a news release on Thursday. Afterward, they were taken to a victim advocacy center.
Jose Leonel Flores was charged with the first-degree felony of Trafficking of Persons Under 18 (Prostitution or Forced Labor), and the second-degree felony of Trafficking of Persons. Jorge Martinez Jimenez received the same charges, as well as a third-degree felony charge for possession of a controlled substance, according to the police report.
Both men were sent to North Richland Hills Joint Detention Center and later transferred to the Tarrant County Detention Center. North Richland Hills police department says that the investigation is ongoing, and they have enlisted the help of the Tarrant County Sheriff’s Office Human Trafficking Unit to assist with the investigation.