Juanita Vero: [00:00:11] Welcome back to Tip of the Spear with your Missoula County Commissioners. I'm Juanita Vero I here with my fellow commissioner Dave Strohmaier Josh Slotnick isn't available to be with us today. January is Human Trafficking Awareness Month, so we're kicking off 2023 with a conversation about trafficking in Missoula County. We're joined today by Detective Sergeant Ryan Prather. Sergeant Prather is the search and rescue coordinator at Missoula County Sheriff's Department. So thank you for joining us. Just real quick, it heads up this episode will deal with difficult topics like relationship and sexual violence. And we also want you to know that the crime victim advocate division of Missoula County is here to help you. Please call 406-258-3830 or visit their office at 317 Woody Street. You can also go to YWCA of Missoula, which is another resource. And their crisis line is 1-800-483-7858. Also get more information at the task force website which is Missoulahumantrafficking.com.
Dave Strohmaier: [00:01:19] Ryan, it's great to have you with us today at this first tip of the spear recording of 2023. And just to begin, maybe give us a little bit of background about yourself, how you got into the position you're currently in and and what your job entails.
Ryan Prather: [00:01:35] Well, first and foremost, I want to say thank you for having me today. My name is Ryan Prather. I am the sergeant of detectives for the Missoula County Sheriff's Office. I have 21 years of experience in law enforcement, 15 of which have been with the Missoula County Sheriff's Office. And for the last two and a half years, I've been the sergeant of the Detective division. I lead and supervise a dozen detectives or so who investigate crimes within Missoula County, which includes child exploitation and human trafficking. And like you said, Dave, I am also one of the deputy coordinators for Missoula County Search and Rescue.
Juanita Vero: [00:02:08] So we'll just jump into it. There's a lot of misconceptions around human trafficking, you know, thinking of the sensational fear of stranger grabbing you in the dark at the grocery store, you know, in the parking lot. Can you explain to our listeners what a, quote unquote typical trafficking case looks like in this community? Statistically, who's most at risk?
Ryan Prather: [00:02:31] Contrary to what someone would see on the big screen, our cases in Missoula, they seem to be a little bit different. It's not to say that we don't have an incidence like that. It's just far and few between. A typical case that we see at the sheriff's office or sexual acts that are being traded for money, drugs, any other trade commodity that there is out there. This is usually a male offering, a female in exchange. You know, that female is doing that because of threats of violence, threats of coercion are typically made. Low income, substance abuse, homelessness, domestic violence, generational trauma have been linked to the victims that are being human trafficked. This could be happening that your next door neighbor's residence, a motel or even a place of employment. Human trafficking can happen anywhere in the community, and the victims could be of any age, race, gender or nationality.
Dave Strohmaier: [00:03:17] Ryan, I'm just curious, so of what you've just described there, I'm guessing that some of how the sheriff's office becomes involved or law enforcement in general becomes involved is because of a report from a member of the public in other cases is probably a result of an investigation that you guys have been working on for a while. Any sense of how that breaks down in terms of how do you come to know that human trafficking is going on?
Ryan Prather: [00:03:46] Well, we have a lot of partners here in the Missoula area, YWCA, All Nations, First Step, and the hospitals. If the victim to human trafficking has not come forward to law enforcement, a lot of times they will come forward to those different groups that I just mentioned. And if we do get involved, you know, it's a very complex revolving case dealing with human trafficking because it's constantly moving. You may have people that come into town for only a few days and then they're gone. Other times, you know, there are some folks that have been cemented here in the valley that we can work, we assign out to a detective. I mean, that's kind of how the ball starts rolling. It's very time consuming and it can be very slow just to paint on the circumstances.
Juanita Vero: [00:04:26] Following up on earlier, how's trafficking related to the problem of missing and murdered Indigenous people?
Ryan Prather: [00:04:33] There are a lot of missing murdered Indigenous people throughout our country. It's a problem in the native community and quite frankly, all communities, just like all cases, we at the sheriff's office, we take them very seriously and we dedicate those resources where they are needed and hold those people accountable. Our office specifically has a detective that is assigned to the Missing and Murdered Indigenous People Task Force, which is out of Lake County, and we work closely with the Flathead Tribal Police, the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes.
Juanita Vero: [00:05:04] Can you say a little bit more about the difficulty?
Ryan Prather: [00:05:07] There are difficult cases, the work because a lot of the time, time isn't on our side. People are constantly moving, whether working out of a hotel or what may be, and they require a lot of man hours. And the goal is to stay in front of these and it's very difficult to do. One of the biggest things right now that's really frustrating to me and it's really hit home is the sextortion. That is one of the biggest things we're dealing with here right now in Missoula County. And basically, for those of you that don't know, it is someone, whether it's a male, female, child, adult, they're sending images of themselves via the Internet and then that person is being pretty much held against their will until they send money. So those images will not be released. We just had a case coming in today from over the weekend. We're averaging up to five of those cases a month.
Dave Strohmaier: [00:05:56] Really? So I've been meaning to ask just maybe a little bit more detail as far as how the Missoula County Sheriff's Office fits into the puzzle of of addressing human trafficking. But what you describe there sounds a lot like cybercrime just to some extent, and it seems like that's pretty something pretty specialized. So maybe talk a little bit about how you guys operate the composition of your team. With Missoula County Sheriff's Office.
Ryan Prather: [00:06:24] We are seeing more and more crimes that involve technology, the whole digital footprint. We are training more and more of our detectives and getting more and more specialized equipment. Thank you very much. That is. You're welcome. But that is the age that we're in now. More and more people are doing things via the Internet, whether they're trafficking women or children over the Internet. That's how they're getting connected and how they're meeting people to begin with most of the cases. So with that new technology that we are using, it's definitely help us. It's helping us do our jobs better and a little bit better, too.
Dave Strohmaier: [00:06:56] Absolutely. And maybe talk a little bit whether it's the Internet piece or just in general, how do you guys interface with other law enforcement agencies clearly play a role, some of which you've already described.
Ryan Prather: [00:07:08] We are partnered with several law enforcement agencies on the local level, along with the federal level, with the FBI, and then on the state level as well with DCI, the Department of Criminal Investigation. Communication is the biggest failure. And everything we do, whether it's law enforcement or just life in general. And that's probably one of the biggest things that can always be worked on. But I think it's getting better. There are different formats we've been using. There's different websites law enforcement has been using to basically share information about certain people are looking for or, Hey, do you recognize this girl? We think she's being trafficked. You know, we're putting things out there so it's getting better, but it's definitely an uphill battle.
Dave Strohmaier: [00:07:47] Yeah. And I'm my mind jumps to what are some of the solutions to this. And it may be something that the sheriff's office is involved with. But from just kind of a preemptive standpoint, what can be done to address this problem that we're facing?
Ryan Prather: [00:08:02] It always comes down to funding. If we have more money, we can put more people specializing in these problems, more training, education. And I think that the local Missoula Human Trafficking Task Force has done a great job. They're putting out a lot of information. The YWCA is doing a great job. There's a lot of groups out there.
Juanita Vero: [00:08:20] Yeah, say more about who Missoula County partners with besides law enforcement or other law enforcement jurisdictions.
Ryan Prather: [00:08:28] We partner with a lot of the local law enforcement agencies Missoula police, the university police, the airport police, the highway patrol, getting that information, getting those messages out there.
Dave Strohmaier: [00:08:38] Ryan, just to interrupt briefly, so in those partnerships, do certain agencies specialize in various aspects of this? So, I mean, in other words, does Missoula County Sheriff's Office tackle one piece, Missoula PD, another?
Ryan Prather: [00:08:53] I'm kind of biased, but I will say...
Dave Strohmaier: [00:08:55] You do it best! Okay.
Ryan Prather: [00:08:57] Our agency is really dedicated and committed to tackling this problem. We have one detective that as a part of the trafficking task force, which includes the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes. We have another detective that has assigned to the newly created FBI Human Trafficking Task Force, which encompasses law enforcement through all out the state of Montana. We have run several different stings. We've put a lot of people in jail, and we're going to hold them accountable for it. Our agency is really involved in it.
Juanita Vero: [00:09:27] And are there other service organizations you partner with?
Ryan Prather: [00:09:30] We partner with the YWCA. First Step over at Providence is a really great partner of ours. Obviously, the local hospitals, All Nations here in Missoula.
Dave Strohmaier: [00:09:39] And what does it look like if at the point in time that you are able to identify a victim of human trafficking? What is the process for those of us out here just kind of ignorant of how these sorts of things get resolved and how the victim gets assistance? What does that look like?
Ryan Prather: [00:09:56] What it would look like is we would get an advocate involved immediately, somebody with more expertise than us as far as medical, psychological, all those sorts of things. We're going to get somebody from the YWCA involved, somebody first step involved we're going to get. That ball rolling almost immediately. And then we as law enforcement will come in and we will get like the bare bones, so to speak, this kind of get like a general overlay. Because what we don't want to do is we don't want to put a victim continuously going through a traumatic experience. We don't want to have to make them tell their story several times.
Juanita Vero: [00:10:27] How do you stay with the victim or I mean, not you necessarily, or the or law enforcement, but just this whole healing process and trying to keep that victim safe and then moving forward seems really daunting. I mean, you could...
Ryan Prather: [00:10:42] It really is.
Juanita Vero: [00:10:42] ...quote unquote, rescue a person and think, oh, yeah, okay, we did this thing. But, you know, she's still in a really difficult, vulnerable position. Right. And how do you move beyond that?
Ryan Prather: [00:10:57] That is where we as law enforcement really rely on our partners and our folks on the outside groups that have those resources, you know, whether it's they need counseling or any kind of medical or they need a place to stay. And we rely heavily on those outside resources. That's why we keep those partnerships. We all need each other. We're all in this for one goal.
Dave Strohmaier: [00:11:18] What surprised you the most about this work over the time that you've been doing it?
Ryan Prather: [00:11:22] Something that has really stuck out to me is that human trafficking is a huge moneymaking business. It has made over $150 billion annually in the country. It ranks second to drug trafficking.
Dave Strohmaier: [00:11:35] Wow.
Ryan Prather: [00:11:35] I mean, that number is astonishing. It blows me away.
Dave Strohmaier: [00:11:38] Yeah, that's that is truly astounding. Are there any trends that you're aware of what's happening now that might not have happened in the past?
Ryan Prather: [00:11:46] Or what is surprising is how much Montana and the Missoula community is growing. We're taking off in population size. More and more people are moving here for various reasons. Some of those people are bringing with them problems from where they were. We are getting and starting to see more and more big city problems here in our community.
Juanita Vero: [00:12:08] Okay. So the big city problems... But it is really just this very basic human issue about power and control and vulnerability.
Dave Strohmaier: [00:12:16] And I think we can all point to any number of changes going on in the community with increasing population. But is there something in particular, is it just because of an increased population that folks from large metropolitan areas who might be doing human trafficking there decide, You know what, Missoula or Billings seems ripe for the picking because there's we have I-90.
Juanita Vero: [00:12:39] Yeah, I-90 and I-15.
Dave Strohmaier: [00:12:41] Transportation hubs or...
Ryan Prather: [00:12:42] I mean we have the largest interstate in the country runs through Missoula, Montana. I-90 stretches from one side of the US to the other side. We have over 58 miles or so of I-90 that runs through our county and we've got plenty of truck stops. We have a lot of population here and...
Juanita Vero: [00:13:00] Okay, talk to us more about how trafficking is connected to economic instability and insecurity and relationships and how can we help way upstream prevent a person from getting in this position or this situation?
Ryan Prather: [00:13:13] There's a lot of good focus groups that are out there. There's a lot of good task forces that are doing a really good job on getting that information out there on different things of what to look for, you know, different signs of trafficking, better education. The Missoula Human Trafficking Task Force is doing a great job on getting that information out there.
Juanita Vero: [00:13:32] How about give us some examples of what isolation or emotional manipulation looks like?
Ryan Prather: [00:13:38] For me, one of the biggest things that I have seen working out on the street is, is that person free to talk on their own? Are they being controlled? That is one of the biggest key points that I pick up on almost immediately. It's like, Hey, there's something wrong. You need to go talk to her. She's not allowed to make decisions. She can't even look at you. Those are big red flags and those are that's probably one of the biggest things to look for. What can be done is dedicating more and more resources towards this problem, catching these folks and holding them accountable and passing on that message to let these folks know this is not okay in here. We're not going to tolerate it here in Missoula County. That's the message that we are sending with these different sting operations that we've done have been very successful with here in the last year, year and a half.
Dave Strohmaier: [00:14:24] The folks who are caught, prosecuted and held accountable, are they learning their lesson? Any insight there?
Ryan Prather: [00:14:31] It's too early to answer that question, only because we had 20 that were charged in 2021 locally through the state of Montana, and then we had seven that were charged federally. It's tough to answer that because I don't know yet if it's working or not, because these folks are going to go to prison. We don't know yet if it's working or not. We do know that the word is out via all these different online clubs don't come the Missoula.
Dave Strohmaier: [00:14:52] Really.
Ryan Prather: [00:14:53] And they're still coming.
Juanita Vero: [00:14:54] But then I think of this is such a human issue and just having a black and white and clean and simple isn't the reality. It is so messy. Anyone who's involved with this because some people are so vulnerable, I mean. You've got to pay rent and you know, or you're addicted or you've got to do something to take care of your kid and you're going to do anything to take care of your kid and then to not feel empowered, though. I mean, I feel like so much of this is is preying upon...
Ryan Prather: [00:15:25] What I really like is the YWCA has folks who are a part of the organization that have been victims of human trafficking, and they tell their side of the story and they are a voice and they are a shoulder for these folks who are just going through this. And they these folks actually help these victims out.
Juanita Vero: [00:15:45] Oh, that's great. Can you say say more about the sting operation in November 2022?
Ryan Prather: [00:15:50] I wasn't a part of a majority of it, but I've been a part of a lot of sting operations within our department.
Juanita Vero: [00:15:55] What's that look like? How long do they take?
Ryan Prather: [00:15:58] So we have one detective that is assigned part time to the Human Trafficking Task force. And it's like I said, it's a newly created division. It entails our agency, state agencies, other local law enforcement agencies and the FBI. Basically, this task force, they work out of Missoula and other bigger cities. Here in Montana, we have online accounts and we are getting all kinds of notifications and requests from adult men who want to come to Missoula to engage in sexual activities with minor children. And as a result, we have made numerous arrests and it's making a dent. It's making a difference. We are basically and people will say, well, that's entrapment. It's not entrapment because they initiate the contact. They know how old this person is that we have online. They initiate everything. They know the ages. They still continue on, they initiate everything. They continue. It's making a dent. And it's really good police work.
Dave Strohmaier: [00:16:55] Well, we really appreciate you, Ryan, taking the time to join us. And this is super important window into a problem in our community and probably across the nation that we need to put resources towards solving. One thing that we oftentimes do, maybe not oftentimes always do with our guests is give them the opportunity. If you've read a good book, if you've listened to a podcast, if you've heard some nugget of truth out there that would be useful for our listeners. Anything, any closing words that you'd like to share?
Ryan Prather: [00:17:28] Detective Captain Dave Conway told me this a couple of years ago and has stuck with me ever since, he told me: "We in law enforcement, we are the voice for the victims who cannot speak or unable to speak." We are the voice for those who can't speak or they're unable to speak for whatever reason. And it's just something that stuck with me for the last couple of years because, I mean, if you really think about it, we we really are the voice.
Dave Strohmaier: [00:17:52] Well, thanks for being that voice in our community.
Juanita Vero: [00:17:55] So appreciate it. Thank you so much.
Ryan Prather: [00:17:57] Thank you for having me.
Dave Strohmaier: [00:17:58] You bet.
Josh Slotnick: [00:18:00] Thanks for listening to the Tip of the Spear podcast. If you enjoy these conversations, it would mean a lot if you would rate and review the show on whichever podcast app you like. And if you know a friend who would like to keep up with what's happening in local government, be sure to recommend this podcast to them. The Tip of the Spear podcast is made possible with support from MCAT, better known as Missoula Community Access Television and our staff in the Missoula County Communications Division. If you have a question or topic you'd like us to address on a future episode, email it to communications at Missoula County US and to find other ways to stay up to date with what's happening at Missoula County. Go to Missoula.co/countyupdates and thanks for listening.