Trump backs Congressman Smith’s fight to end human trafficking

WASHINGTON — Rep. Chris Smith’s legislation to fight human trafficking was one of three bills on the subject passed Wednesday by the U.S. House. Smith’s bill would earmark $568 million over four years training hotel and airline employees on how to recognize when someone traveling is being held against their will to be used as a… Read the rest of this entry »

• Tweet

Congressman Smith’s bill to protect minorities fleeing ISIS passes House

WASHINGTON — Legislation sponsored by a New Jersey GOP congressman to protect minorities in the Middle East from attacks by the Islamic State passed the U.S. House by voice vote Tuesday. The Iraq and Syria Relief and Accountability Act was sponsored by Rep. Chris Smith (R-4th Dist.) in response to mass killings of minorities, including Christians… Read the rest of this entry »

• Tweet

29 pimps, prostitutes in N.J. arrested in FBI child sex trafficking bust

NEWARK — More than two dozens pimps and prostitutes were arrested in New Jersey as part of an international sweep led by the FBI to crackdown on human trafficking, authorities said. In addition to the 29 arrests, a 17-year-old in New Jersey was rescued in what authorities called “Operation Cross Country X.” The FBI’s Philadelphia division… Read the rest of this entry »

• Tweet

House of Representatives Passes International Megan’s Law, Bill Awaits Obama’s Signature

By Congressman Chris Smith

Eight years after I first introduced a bill to protect children in the U.S. and around the world from convicted pedophiles who travel in secret to or from the United States—currently below the radar of law enforcement officials—it is now on the verge of becoming law.

The House today passed, and sent to the President, my International Megan’s Law to Prevent Demand for Child Sex Trafficking (HR 515)—named for Megan Kanka, a seven-year-old from Hamilton, N.J. in our congressional district who was sexually assaulted and killed in 1994. Megan’s assailant was a convicted, repeat sex offender living across the street, unbeknownst to residents in the neighborhood. Due to public outcry in response to the tragedy and to hard work by Megan’s loving parents, Richard and Maureen Kanka, the New Jersey State Legislature passed the original Megan’s Law (NJSA 2C: 7-1 through 7-II) in 1994 to require public notification of convicted sex offenders living in the community.

Read the rest of this entry »

• Tweet

19 Arrested in Monmouth Prostitution Sting

19 people were arrested last weekend on prostitution related charges according to an announcement by Sheriff Shaun Golden.  The arrests occurred in Wall and Hazlet Townships.

The undercover operation was conducted by the Monmouth County Sheriff’s Office, the FBI, the Monmouth County Prosecutor’s Office and the Hazlet and Wall Township Police Departments.

Twelve females were charged with solicitation of prostitution and seven people were charged with promotion of prostitution. Additional charges included possession of Controlled Dangerous Substances, possession with intent to distribute within 1,000 feet of a school zone and possession of a weapon. A total of $5,000 was confiscated.

Read the rest of this entry »

• Tweet

U.S. House passes International Megan’s Law sponsored by N.J. Rep. Chris Smith

N.J. Congressman Chris Smith, (R-4th District, left, concludes a meeting with staff members, legal assistant, Cate Bendetti center, and Foreign Affairs Council Akkison Hollabaugh, right, before heading to the Capitol Building. Washington, DC. Robert Sciarrino/The Star-Ledger

WASHINGTON — The U.S. House of Representatives today passed legislation to extend Megan’s Law beyond American borders. The bill, sponsored by U.S. Rep. Chris Smith (R-4th Dist.), would require the U.S. to tell other countries when convicted sex offenders are traveling there. It would also try to set up reciprocal notification systems so the U.S. is… Read the rest of this entry »

• Tweet

Joint Super Bowl Operation Targeting Commercial Child Sex Trafficking Rescue 25 Minors, Apprehends 45 Suspects

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Members of U.S. and New Jersey law enforcement agencies who took part in a Joint Super Bowl Operation deserve tremendous credit for rescuing 25 children ages 13-17 from lives of misery and sexual abuse, and for arresting 45 suspects who allegedly exploited the children for commercial sex, said Congressman Chris Smith (NJ-04), Chairman of the House congressional panel that oversees global human rights, and author of the landmark law, the Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000 (Public Law 106-386).

According to the FBI, which announced the arrests yesterday, some suspects claimed to have traveled to New Jersey from other states specifically for the purpose of prostituting women and children at the Super Bowl. High-profile special events, which draw large crowds, have become lucrative opportunities for child prostitution criminal enterprises, the FBI said.

“This unprecedented effort by federal agencies in collaboration with local law enforcement from New Jersey aggressively focused on combating commercial child sex trafficking,” said Smith. “The joint efforts and the extraordinary leadership shown by Governor Christie and the New Jersey Human Trafficking Task force is to be applauded for working effectively to help save lives. 

“Young victims now have a chance for a new start thanks to these arrests and rescues. Those who took advantage of young runaways and women forced or mislead into a life of sex trafficking and abuse must now face justice. Hopefully this effective effort will become a prototype and have a chilling effect on perpetrators across the nation and around the globe.”

Read the rest of this entry »

• Tweet