A woman who was victimized by an alleged criminal network in the Greater Toronto Area for 15 years has led Halton Regional Police to the largest human trafficking bust in the force’s history.
At a news conference on Tuesday, investigators revealed the results of Project Troubadour, a 10-month sexual exploitation investigation that was initiated after the victim reported the criminal activity to police in September.
She’s one of 12 people between the ages of 18 and 34 who police say were trafficked in the commercial sex trade across the country. But Supt. Dave Costantini warned there are likely many more victims.
“Unfortunately, we believe that 12 victims is just the tip of the iceberg,” he said.
On the strength of the information submitted to police, officers executed 10 search warrants at various residences across the GTA on July 13, including addresses in Mississauga, Oakville and Burlington.
Nine individuals were arrested as a result and now face a combined 85 criminal offences. Police released images of eight of the suspects, but withheld the image of one, as investigators believe it would not assist with the identification of additional victims.
Lamborghini, $450K in ‘high-end’ jewelry seized
Police said they seized a Lamborghini Urus, a Mercedes-Benz S550, a Mercedes-Benz AMG GT, two Seadoos, an estimated $450,000 in high-end jewelry and $30,000 in Canadian and U.S. currency as part of their investigation.
Speaking to reporters, Det. Scott Heyerman said the victim who came forward to police was first exploited by 40-year-old Burlington resident Omar “Syph” Brooks. He’s facing 14 charges—the most of any suspect charged in Project Troubadour—including trafficking in persons, living off the avails of prostitution, and multiple counts of assault.
The victim was subsequently exploited by 33-year-old Michelle Dimarco, another Burlington resident who goes by the aliases “Coco” and “Ivy Love,” according to Heyerman. Dimarco is facing nine criminal charges, including seven counts of procuring.
Heyerman confirmed that some of the suspects charged are related.
Victims trafficked to British Columbia, Alberta
Heyerman would not divulge how exactly the suspects targeted their victims, but explained that human traffickers often use deception and coercion to “sell them a dream.”
“Sometimes it’s a false relationship. It becomes a bit of a love scam, for the most part. And that is the key to having a successful operation: to make the people that you are deceiving believe that nothing’s happening to them,” he said.
Without saying explicitly how the suspects advertised their victims within the commercial sex trade, Heyerman said police have evidence that they were trafficked in British Columbia, Alberta, as well as in Ontario.
“There are websites where ads are being posted for sexual services across the country ... We believe there are other provinces involved, but we’re still investigating,” he said.
For a full list of the charges laid and suspects arrested, click here.
