A dedicated human trafficking unit in Aurora, Colorado, recovered 29 survivors, including 15 minors, and arrested 28 suspects during its first year of operation, according to the Aurora Police Department. The unit opened 53 investigations since its creation in September 2025, focusing on sex trafficking involving people 21 and younger.
APD Sgt. Joseph Sullivan said the work is exposing abuse that residents may never suspect is happening around them. «It is happening in our backyard, not just in those other places,» Sullivan said. The department's Human Trafficking Unit operates with three detectives and a supervising sergeant, a structure Sullivan said allows investigators to apply the time and effort these complex cases deserve.
Human trafficking, as defined by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, involves the use of force, fraud, or coercion to obtain some type of labor or commercial sex act. Sullivan cautioned that trafficking often looks very different from the abductions portrayed in movies. «There is some kind of need that a trafficker identifies to exploit, and that's how they get in,» he said. That need could be housing, food, money, or affection.
One case Sullivan described involved a 16-year-old girl who was brought to Aurora, a city of just over 400,000 people outside Denver, from another town by her boyfriend, who then left her there. Trying to survive, she was sexually exploited by people around an apartment complex in exchange for somewhere to stay, drugs, or food. During an interview, she asked a detective to find those responsible. «I really hope that you can find the people that are doing this because it really hurts what I'm having to do just to survive,» Sullivan recalled her saying. The girl died of an overdose a few months later.
Reaching a survivor does not guarantee an immediate or lasting escape. Survivors may need repeated contact, resources, and offers of help before they can find a way out, Sullivan said. That is part of why having dedicated detectives matters, he added, noting that the investigations demand time to gather evidence, build cases, and help victims feel comfortable enough to testify.
APD Investigations Bureau Cmdr. Marc Paolino said the unit was built to put survivors at the center of investigations while targeting those exploiting them. «The work they've done has made our community safer and sent a clear message that the Aurora Police Department will aggressively pursue anyone who exploits others for this type of heinous, criminal activity,» Paolino said in a department release.
Among those arrested is Marshae Wheelock, 24, of Aurora, whom police linked to multiple cases allegedly involving the exploitation of children over several years. «Marshae Wheelock represents the type of offender the Human Trafficking Unit was created to investigate; someone who repeatedly preys on vulnerable children,» APD Deputy Chief Mark Hildebrand said in the release.
The department also detailed a February undercover operation in which investigators recovered a 16-year-old girl and later identified three suspects accused of sexually exploiting her for financial gain.
The unit works with human services officials, nonprofit organizations, and victim advocates. Sullivan pointed to a local group, From Silence to Saved, which helps victims from the beginning of an investigation through court proceedings and afterward. He also credited support from police leadership and organizations that provide tools to help detectives identify victims online.
Sullivan oversees Aurora's Internet Crimes Against Children team as well as its trafficking detectives. The teams investigate distinct crimes, including sextortion, but their work can overlap. The department said the trafficking unit draws on local, state, and federal partnerships, and investigative resources through the Colorado Cyber Guardian Task Force.
The threats cross geographic and economic boundaries. Sullivan described another high school student who came from a wealthier background but became vulnerable after her mother suffered a disabling medical crisis and her father was absent. The girl became addicted to drugs and was exploited. Asked whether Tren de Aragua had been involved in the trafficking his team investigated, Sullivan said his unit had not encountered that connection. His broader point was that exploitation can affect people across backgrounds.
Filling unmet needs through legitimate support is a central part of helping survivors, Sullivan said. For him, the work remains personal. «It really is satisfying being able to contact these survivors and then identify who's exploiting them and holding them accountable,» he said.