By Christine Sylvia, Ed.D., Gateway Alliance against Human Trafficking, Program Committee
Human trafficking is about money, plain and simple…and trafficking is a very lucrative business. In 2024 alone, traffickers profited $236 billion from forced labor worldwide, according to the International Labour Organization’s Profits and Poverty: The Economics of Forced Labour report (2024). Traffickers are creative in their methods of exploiting people for financial gain. Victims may be forced into sex work or labor, isolated from others and denied their earnings and rights.
Individuals with disabilities may be at greater financial risk, often exploited for their government benefits. Benefits Trafficking is the systematic recruitment, harboring, neglect, and financial exploitation of elderly and disabled adults who receive government benefits such as Social Security, Veteran’s Benefits, Medicaid, and Medicare (Thomas & Strickland, 2024). This sophisticated form of trafficking combines financial fraud with human exploitation, putting vulnerable populations at risk for abuse and manipulation.
Trafficking of individuals with disabilities is a significant, yet underreported issue. A lack of standardized screening practices across both disability service providers and anti-trafficking organizations contributes to this gap. According to the National Human Trafficking and Disabilities Working Group (2022), most disability service providers do not screen for trafficking, and fewer than half of anti-trafficking organizations screen victims for disabilities.
What we do know, however, is that traffickers often target those with disabilities. Although the term disabilities can mean a wide range of deficits, certain disabilities may make an individual more vulnerable to a predator. For instance, those with communication disorders may be unable to report abuse effectively. Individuals with intellectual or learning deficits may not be as well versed on their rights and therefore more easily manipulated by a trafficker. The desire to fit in and develop relationships may make those with disabilities more willing to trust a trafficker and put themselves in risky situations. Furthermore, adults with disabilities may rely on caregivers, making them especially vulnerable to trafficking situations where they are isolated and without resources. These structural and interpersonal oppressions broadly experienced by people with a disability increase vulnerability to human trafficking (Nichols & Heil, 2022).
Several harrowing cases have brought this hidden form of trafficking into the public eye. One of the most notorious involved Henry’s Turkey Service, where 32 men with intellectual disabilities were forced to work in inhumane conditions for decades. Their caregivers stole their government benefits while subjecting them to abuse and denying them proper living conditions. In what became the largest financial award in U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission history, the victims received a $240 million judgment (U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, 2013).
Another shocking case emerged in 2015, involving disabled individuals who were estranged from their families. They were lured into group homes, where the trafficker became their representative payee, took control of their government benefits, and kept them locked in rooms, sedated, and abused over several years (U.S. Department of Justice, 2015).
More recent incidents further highlight the crisis. In 2023, a woman in Georgia was indicted for trafficking a developmentally disabled adult, forcing her into commercial sex acts across multiple hotel locations (Office of the Attorney General, 2023). That same year, in Missouri, a woman was put on trial for allegedly trafficking her daughter, who has cerebral palsy (SanFilippo, 2023).
While the problem is complex, there are concrete solutions to reduce trafficking risk. Training and awareness are crucial. Organizations like Gateway Alliance Against Human Trafficking offer free programming to educate caregivers, individuals, and service providers regarding the risks and signs of trafficking situations.
Healthcare and social service systems must also implement consistent screening practices to identify trafficking victims more effectively. Stricter oversight of caregiving systems—particularly for representative payees and group homes—could prevent financial and physical abuse. Additionally, stronger collaboration between anti-trafficking initiatives and disability advocacy groups can help bridge critical service gaps and create more robust safety nets.
The trafficking and exploitation of people with disabilities is a hidden crisis—one that thrives in the shadows of our systems and communities. By raising awareness, improving training, and fostering collaboration, we can begin to dismantle the structures that allow this abuse to persist. Every person deserves dignity, safety, and the right to live free from exploitation.
Resources
International Labour Organization. (2024). Profits and poverty: The economics of forced labour (2nd ed.). International Labour Office. https://www.ilo.org/global/publications/books/WCMS_236204/lang–en/index.htm
National Human Trafficking and Disabilities Working Group. (2022). National data and assessment survey: Report summary. International Organization for Adolescents. https://w1669e.p3cdn1.secureserver.net/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/Report-Summary.pdf
Nichols, A., & Heil, E. (2022). Human trafficking of people with a disability: An analysis of state and federal cases. Dignity: A Journal of Analysis of Exploitation and Violence, 7(1), Article 1. https://doi.org/10.23860/dignity.2022.07.01.01
Office of the Attorney General. (2023, December 12). Carr announces new indictment in Clayton County for trafficking a disabled adult. https://law.georgia.gov/press-releases/2023-12-12/carr-announces-new-indictment-clayton-county-trafficking-disabled-adult
SanFilippo, A. (2023, September 19). Sex trafficking trial involving a disabled child set to start Tuesday. Columbia Missourian. https://www.komu.com/news/midmissourinews/sex-trafficking-trial-involving-a-disabled-child-set-to-start-tuesday/article_89473664-447d-5fe1-8005-e71db6af57fe.html
Thomas, A., & Strickland, H. (2024). Benefits trafficking: Human trafficking of older adults and adults with disabilities. Frontiers in Rehabilitation Sciences. https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC10839064/
U.S. Department of Justice. (2015, November 5). Woman who held disabled adults captive in subhuman conditions sentenced to life plus 80 years in prison. https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/woman-who-held-disabled-adults-captive-subhuman-conditions-sentenced-life-plus-80-years-prison
U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. (2013). Jury awards $240 million for long-term abuse of workers with intellectual disabilities. https://www.eeoc.gov/newsroom/jury-awards-240-million-long-term-abuse-workers-intellectual-disabilities