South Carolina recorded 678 victims of human trafficking last year.
That’s 490 more than 2018.
This may seem discouraging but SC Attorney General Alan Wilson sees it as hopeful.
It means the efforts SC is making to combat human trafficking are working.
“The crime was already there. The trafficking was already happening,” Wilson said.
“What’s happening now is that it’s possible to use that information to put it into combat.”
“You can’t manage it unless you measure it.”
That’s what the SC Human Trafficking Task Force’s Annual Report is doing.
The report details the efforts of the State Task Force to protect victims, prosecute traffickers and stop human trafficking.
The top county for human trafficking is now Horry County, followed by Greenville, Richland, Dorchester, and Charleston counties.
The large increase in victims indicates higher awareness of the National Human Trafficking Hotline number.
This helps victims call for help, Wilson said.
“We also recognize that the regional task forces are better educating members of their communities which in turn causes shifts in the top 5 counties each year.”
Wilson announced new partnerships with the SC Restaurant and Lodging Association and the SC Beer Wholesalers Association.
These partnerships will increase human trafficking awareness in hospitality and beer wholesaling and to spot potential human trafficking.
For more information on the South Carolina Human Trafficking Task Force and to read the 2019 Annual Report, please visit www.humantrafficking.scag.gov or www.scag.gov .

What to look for
Where is sex trafficking happening?
Escort services, illicit massage businesses, resident-based commercial sex, outdoor solicitation, pornography.
Who’s doing the exploiting?
Employers, recruiters, family members, intimate partners.
How do they control the victims?
They make victims dependent on them through abuse, threats of deportation, or drug addiction.
How do they recruit?
With job offers, false promises, fraud, familial relationships and intimate partnerships.
If you believe someone may be a victim, call the Human Trafficking National Hotline at 1-888-373-7888.