The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Wisconsin is participating in National Human Trafficking Prevention Month, joining the Department of Justice’s (DOJ) efforts to address human trafficking and support survivors.
Attorney General Pamela Bondi stated, “This Department of Justice is working tirelessly alongside our partners to dismantle human trafficking networks, help survivors, and protect vulnerable populations from being exploited.” In Wisconsin, these efforts include collaboration with a law enforcement task force led by the FBI and the multidisciplinary Wisconsin Human Trafficking Task Force under the state’s Department of Justice Division of Criminal Investigation.
Human trafficking cases are considered a top priority both nationally and within the district. Since 2000, when the Trafficking Victims Protection Act was enacted, multiple traffickers have been prosecuted in the Eastern District for sex trafficking and forced labor. Sentencing judges have described these as some of the most serious federal offenses.
A recent high-profile case involved Samuel Spencer, a Milwaukee resident convicted for trafficking several women over 15 years through drug dependency manipulation, financial control, and physical abuse. He received a 45-year prison sentence. At sentencing, Chief Judge Pamela Pepper said Spencer had used “some of the worst violence and coercive tactics that she had ever seen to deprive his victims of ‘their human agency.’”
Earlier this month, a grand jury indicted Hector Duarte from Union Grove on charges related to sex trafficking and interstate transportation for prostitution. Duarte allegedly used force and fraud to compel an adult victim into commercial sex acts in Wisconsin and Illinois between late May and late June 2025. He remains detained pending trial; if convicted, he faces at least 15 years up to life in prison.
U.S. Attorney Brad D. Schimel commented on these crimes: “human trafficking is the most insidious and difficult to uncover among the crimes we see. Coordination between federal, state and local law enforcement and social service providers is critical. Traffickers rob survivors of their very dignity by exploiting vulnerabilities like addiction, poverty, and the basic need for human connection. They often commit their crimes in plain sight right before our eyes, because survivors are terrified of seeking help based upon the extreme violence and psychological manipulation to which they are subjected. Each of us has a responsibility to educate ourselves about the threat, to protect those at risk of victimization, and to report known or suspected trafficking for investigation and intervention.” The public can contact the National Human Trafficking Hotline at 888-373-7888 for tips or assistance.
This month also sees increased DOJ resources directed toward fighting human trafficking. One national initiative is the Backpage Remission Program, which offers financial compensation opportunities for victims advertised on sites such as Backpage.com or CityXGuide.com—both seized by DOJ in recent years—with claims due by March 31.
Additionally, DOJ’s Office of Justice Programs is inviting grant applications aimed at supporting communities’ anti-trafficking efforts. Available funding targets areas including housing assistance for victims, services for minors affected by trafficking, prevention programs focused on girls at risk, survivor engagement initiatives in anti-trafficking work, collaborative model task forces against trafficking rings, improved outcomes for child/youth victims, and general victim services.
