On April 8, a 15-year-old Texas girl attended a Dallas Mavericks home game with her father – the kind of daddy/daughter date usually remembered fondly by both for years to come. The evening was a disaster for the parents and the little girl.
The girl went to the bathroom shortly before halftime and did not return. Though her father reported her missing before the game even ended, the family’s attorney now says “Dallas police never began an investigation and failed to make any efforts to locate the teenage girl.” Instead, he was told after the game, with no indication of his daughter’s whereabouts available, to go home and wait until he heard something from the authorities.
The family’s anguish dragged on. After several days of anguish, the family called Dallas Police Department before turning to Texas Counter-Trafficking Initiative. It found out that the girl was being offered for sex in Oklahoma City.
In connection to the case, eight people were arrested so far. The charges ranged from human trafficking to distribution of child pornography and rape.
According to the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, family attorney Zeke Fortenberry “sent a letter to the Dallas Police Department, the American Airlines Center, the Dallas Mavericks and Extended Stay America saying that their actions or policies failed the victim and her family.”
Fortenberry says the family’s complaints against the Mavericks and America Airlines Center center on the man, who left the arena with the girl, holding a fraudulent ticket. While the Mavericks knew that the man who purchased the ticket for the woman was involved in this type of activity, America Airlines Center also confirmed it to Fortenberry. However, the fake ticket holder still managed to access a restricted area to meet the girl. Extended Stay America’s employees in Oklahoma City, where the police found the girl, have not been properly trained to spot the sex trafficking activity taking place.
A side note from WFAA’s story on the crime:
Fortenberry claimed that he has yet to receive a reply from any party to which he wrote the letter. However, he stated that he hopes to receive a reply within one month in order for the situation to be settled quickly and without filing a suit.
It is an awful reality. It isn’t just young women who are being smuggled across borders to be sex slaves. This happens right here in the home. All those who were involved in this crime should pray for God’s mercy. No one on the planet is as kind. A prayer for healing is offered to the little girl.
(EDITOR’S NOTE: Kevin Downey Jr. at our sister site, PJ Media, has posted the names of those arrested in this case, and helpful tips to keep your children safe from human and sex trafficking.)
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