FBI raids homes in human trafficking investigation

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http://www.myfoxtampabay.com/dpp/news/local/pinellas/fbi-raids-human-trafficking-investigation-120810

FBI raids homes in human trafficking investigation

Updated: Wednesday, 08 Dec 2010, 12:39 PM EST
Published : Wednesday, 08 Dec 2010, 12:31 PM EST

CLEARWATER - Reports indicate that authorities have conducted three raids in Pinellas County involving possible human trafficking and forced labor.

One raid was reportedly conducted at a home on Oaklawn Avenue in Largo; another at the Country Super Buffet restaurant on East Bay Drive. Another home on Havana Avenue in Clearwater was also raided, according to the FBI.

The FBI says they and Clearwater officers acted on search warrants after an investigation into alleged human trafficking.

The people found at the residences are being treated as victims and are being questioned "about the circumstances surrounding their status in the U.S.," the FBI says.

Few other details about the raids have been released at this point. Clearwater police say Florida is one of the top states for the trafficking of women and children into the U.S., and multiple cases have been uncovered in Tampa Bay in the last five years.

Police say anyone who may have come into contact with human trafficking victims in Pinellas, Hillsborough, or Pasco Counties is asked to call the Task Force hotline at [phone]. The Trafficking Information and Referral Hotline can also be reached at 1-888-373-7888.