MEMPHIS, Tenn. — A Memphis mother is trying to protect her teenage daughters after she says they’ve become trapped in the cycle of sex trafficking.
“MPD has taken these guys into custody. They have caught them with my daughters. They are 13, 14 and 15.”
She says her daughters have been pulled towards a downward spiral.
“They’re luring them by buying them clothes, shoes, giving them money.”
Each time the girls disappear she says she calls police, and she has documents to prove it. She says she’s told investigators numerous times about her suspicions that her daughters are being sex trafficked.
“I feel let down by the system.”
Often times the desperate mother has resorted to taking things into her own hands and says she’s confronted the suspects herself.
So far the only man who has been arrested is Jarvis Johnson,and he’s only been charged with harboring a runaway child.
“I’m hurt. I’m disappointed, and I know something can be done.”
The mother believes her house was shot up after Johnson’s arrest out of retaliation. Now she lives in hiding.
Throughout all of this, she says her daughter’s grades have slipped, and the school district is calling them truant.
Debra Farrow is the founder of Wings of Love. She’s been helping the family find a way out.
“When she sought out help, they started to tell her to keep a tab on your kids. Then she lost her job, but she was following directions,” Farrow said. “It’s more than just sex. They are just brainwashed.”
The mother says she recently got a call from a friend telling her the girls were at a strip mall with a group of guys. They were being sold to the highest bidder in exchange for sexual favors.
“It’s not just my children. It’s a lot of children in Memphis that are dealing with this.”
She says her daughters haven’t disappeared in about three weeks. She’s hoping that she’s close to breaking the cycle.
