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SALT LAKE CITY — Operation Underground Railroad is a rapidly growing non-profit based in Utah which rescues children who are being trafficked for labor or sex. The organization has conducted rescue missions in nine different countries over the last two years.
OUR recently started working on rescue operations in India, one of the biggest human trafficking markets in the world.
After starting a major campaign in India a little over six months ago, Tim Ballard, the founder of OUR, says they are seeing things in India they haven't seen anywhere else.
“People come there from Russia, from the United States, from Europe,” said Ballard. “There's pockets in India where people feel very safe that they can engage in illicit sex with children. Kids are being sold for sex.”
Working with police, OUR infiltrates brothels and night clubs to rescue sex slaves.
“These are lock-down brothels or dance clubs, so you’ll go through a series of locked gates or doors just to get in as a customer,” said Louie, an undercover operative for OUR. According to Louie, sex slavery in India is different than anything he’s seen other places.
Sometimes dozens of victims will be confined in a tiny space in dire conditions, according to Louie.
“We are always checking behind air conditioning units, behind the beds, in closets because they build trap doors with rooms where they lock down the victims in there,” Louis said.
“They'll cut holes in the drywall and throw them back there and they live in a space of like four feet by 12 feet — no blankets or anything. They just throw food and water in there and say get ready because in five hours you're back. And then lock them behind the wall,” Louie continued.
Since June, OUR has conducted 14 rescue missions in India, helping authorities put 57 people behind bars and rescuing 137 victims. At least one of the victims was trafficked from Syria, with operatives Louie believes are connected to ISIS.
Ballard thinks they'll be doing a lot more work in India in the coming year. OUR is growing faster than he ever expected and he has Utahns to thank for it.
“The bulk of our resources come from donors here in Utah,” Ballard said. “So we think it is a Utah thing that keeps us afloat and keeps us running.”
A motion picture called “The Abolitionists” documenting some of the OUR rescue missions is set to hit theaters nationwide on May 16.
