HomeMy WebLinkAboutNomination statement for Victims AwardsNOMINATION STATEMENT
In March of 2019, the Iowa City Police Department (ICPD) became aware of several
instances of human trafficking in and around Iowa City involving high school age female
victims. The ICPD began investigations into those cases. Later that month, another
human trafficking ring was uncovered that was much larger and was found to have
connections to the original victims. Detectives Mike Smithey, Jenny Clarahan, and David
Gonzalez, along with FBI Special Agent Casey Maxted, began working both cases as a
unit. With the assistance of Computer Forensics Detective Todd Cheney, the case quickly
ballooned into a very large web of human sex trafficking involving several jurisdictions
across multiple states.
Due to the size of the case, a request was made to the Iowa Division of Criminal
Investigation (DCI) to provide an agent to assist. Special Agent Jagat Sandhu was
assigned and joined the unit immediately along with an additional ICPD Detective Andy
Rich. In the following weeks the unit received additional assistance from Detective Sgt.
Katrina Rudish of the Johnson County Sherriff’s Office and Detective Hanna Dvorak of
the Coralville Police Department.
The newly formed task force set up an office at the ICPD and began working tirelessly,
spending many hours combing through phone records and on-line ads while conducting
numerous interviews with victims and witnesses. In all, approximately 135 search
warrants were executed covering at least 250 phone numbers in addition to numerous
social media accounts. As an additional resource, the ICPD team gained access to the
software program Spotlight, which aided in identifying additional photos of the victims on
websites traditionally used for sex trafficking across the country.
With an overwhelming amount of data flooding in from various cellular providers and
social media platforms, the ICPD needed an efficient means of analyzing and processing
the data into usable information. Detective Michael Smithey was charged with
implementing a new software program called Cell Hawk, where he analyzed over 3 million
lines of data that was obtained through the search warrants. Smithey used
both Spotlight and Cell Hawk programs in conjunction with one another to make
comparisons of the phone records. Through Cell Hawk Smithey was able to build maps,
logging the location data to further develop usable, visual, common-sense evidence of
the many crimes that occurred against the victims, and then connect those crimes to our
various suspects.
This evidence-based approach helped the team avoid retraumatizing the victims of
human trafficking who suffered terrible traumas by mitigating the need to rely upon their
testimony at trial. This new approach to investigate human trafficking hadn’t been utilized
in the Iowa City area before. It is a fact-driven, evidence-based approach that doesn’t
place an undue burden on the victim to participate in the criminal justice system. The
ICPD team is convinced that this new style of investigation is applicable to any human
trafficking investigation and doesn’t rely upon the antiquated ‘sting’ approach that
traditionally led to incarceration of victims of human trafficking, thus re-victimizing them
and corroding trust in the system’s ability to help them gain safety.
During the course of the investigation, the task force utilized a victim-centered, trauma
informed approach, which helped them to gain the trust of the victims. This was a lengthy
process that required extreme perseverance by the members, and it was critical to
successful outcomes for the victim and for prosecution. All through this process,
detectives prioritized direct involvement of victim advocates in the investigation. The team
recognized the high level of complex trauma each victim was facing and the need to
demonstrate partnership with advocates to maintain victim participation. Without victim
advocates, engaging victims in the investigation would have been impossible.
Throughout the spring and summer of 2019, the task force worked closely with Assistant
U.S. Attorneys Virginia Bruner and Kristin Herrera as well as Victim Witness Coordinator
Christina Busse, and all of the U.S. Attorney's Office of the Southern District of Iowa. The
fruits of their work resulted in the federal indictments of six individuals during the summer
of 2019.
During the winter of 2019-2020, five of the six defendants pled guilty and one was found
guilty by a jury. The fact that five defendants plead guilty in the face of overwhelming
evidence of their crimes is a testament to the strength of the cases and of the
effectiveness of the evidence-based human sex trafficking investigation.
This investigation was one of the most significant and largest human trafficking cases to
take place in the State of Iowa. It clearly demonstrates the benefit of utilizing the creativity
and combined efforts of a task force with the implementation of new, technology-based
resources to take on human sex trafficking. It would have been difficult, if not impossible,
without the efforts and expertise of the group of agencies working together on a common
goal of freeing the victims and helping them to restore their lives in the aftermath of such
terrible crimes.
All the members of this task force and their agencies are to be commended for their
dedication and professionalism in this investigation. Because of their work, the Johnson
County community became a safer place by shining a light on the darkness of human
trafficking.