LOS ANGELES — While eyes will be on players during the Super Bowl, law enforcement agencies will be watching illegal activities off the field.


What You Need To Know

  • SoFi Stadium in Inglewood will host the Super Bowl on Sunday

  • Advocates say trafficking happens around the Super Bowl, just as it does all year long

  • California is one of the largest sites of human trafficking in the U.S.

  • More than 1,200 cases are reported each year, according to the California attorney general’s office

Advocates say trafficking happens around the big game, just as it does all year long.

Erin Wilson is a case manager at Journey Out, a nonprofit that helps victims of sex trafficking. Once a week, she and other members of the outreach team drive down Figueroa Street in South Los Angeles, an area known as the track where people being sexually exploited are hidden in plain sight.

Wilson has been doing this work for eight years.

“Journey Out is my home, it’s my passion, it’s what I do,” she said.

The team brings small bags filled with items such as lipstick, condoms, facemasks and a thermometer. A small white sheet of paper with the organization’s number is also placed inside. Executive Director Nayeli May says they hand them out as a way to offer help.

“So whenever they are ready, they can reach out to us,” May said.

California is one of the largest sites of human trafficking in the U.S. More than 1,200 cases are reported each year, according to the California attorney general’s office.

The outreach team drove down side streets, where cars are lined up in traffic waiting to approach girls on the street. Stephany Powell, who rode in the passenger seat, couldn't help but notice their age.

“That girl had braces, did you see that?” she said.

Powell has seen as many as 50 girls per night. After serving 30 years as an LAPD officer and in the vice unit, she decided to try and help in another way.

“It was an issue that could not be arrested away,” she said. “Services were needed. So that’s why when I retired, I actually came to Journey Out.”

Powell now works also with the National Center on Sexual Exploitation but still rides along with the outreach team to be a resource to those who need help.

Wilson has helped survivors who were groomed by a pimp.

“Many had a boyfriend who made them feel really loved, and one day, it turned into, 'Can you just do this for me one time?'" said Wilson.

Wilson added that driving around can make her feel sad, but also hopeful.

“I’ve seen people call. I’ve seen people come to the office. I’ve seen them get to raise their children,” she said. “I’ve seen all kinds of changes being made because we’re out here doing this work, and because we’re out here offering them hope and a way out when they’re ready.”

Anyone can report human trafficking by calling the National Human Trafficking Hotline at 1-888-373-7888 or by texting 233733.