Today is World Day Against Trafficking in Persons and the United Nations theme is 'Trapped behind the scam'.
Behind the fraudulent messages and fake investment schemes most of us delete without a second thought, there is often a person who was lured by a false job offer, moved across a border, and forced to run those scams under debt, surveillance and the threat of violence. The person committing the crime can also be a victim and their experiences are often deeply harmful.
That duality needs to shape how these cases are handled. Investigation and safeguarding cannot be treated as separate responses. Recognising that those involved in fraud are often coerced, abused and trafficked changes who we prosecute, who we protect, and how we go after the networks profiting from them.
This is the work Salterton does. Our specialists follow the money to surface exploitation that a victim, often isolated and afraid, will rarely report themselves, and we build local capability so that jurisdictions with limited resource can disrupt networks that cross borders and prey on the gaps between them. Lasting change comes from strengthening the people and systems closest to the harm.
