Sheriff Continues Quest To Combat Human Trafficking On Long Island

RIVERHEAD, NY — Once again, the Suffolk County Correctional facility in Riverhead will be illuminated in blue throughout the month of January to raise awareness about human trafficking.

January is national Slavery and Human Trafficking Prevention Month, Suffolk County Sheriff Errol Toulon said. Also during January, the Department of Homeland Security wages its annual "Blue Campaign," an effort to spotlight human trafficking.

To that end, the facade of the Suffolk County Sheriffi's Office and the correctional facility in Riverhead will be lit up blue each night throughout January.

Toulon and the Suffolk County Sheriff’s Office have embraced the Blue Campaign over the past few years, he said, with efforts to wipe out human trafficking.

“Human trafficking is happening in Suffolk County and in communities across the country,” said Toulon. “Most often these victims are women who are vulnerable due to a substance abuse issues and who may have had several traumatic experiences throughout their lives. It’s not uncommon for youth in the foster care system to fall victim to traffickers, but men and women from all backgrounds can become victims.”

Toulon created the Sheriff’s Anti-Trafficking Initiative , or S.A.T.I., unit in 2018, and it was the first of its kind in the country operating from inside a correctional facility. The goal of the project is to ensure that all victims of human trafficking who pass through the Suffolk County correctional facility are identified and have access to the services they need to recover, he said.

Survivors also receive help through the S.T.A.R.T. Resource Center and through many non-profit service providers that have partnered with the sheriff’s office.

Since it was formed, S.A.T.I. has conducted 4,224 inmate interviews, identified 282 human trafficking victims and identified 170 perpetrators, Toulon said.

Criminal investigations against these traffickers are coordinated with local, state, and federal partners working with the Suffolk County anti-trafficking initiative, he said.