Raise awareness of human trafficking in UP; KBOCC hosting national speaker at Jan. 25 program

January 19, 2018

Measuring up!–These young fishermen braved the bitter cold just like everyone else at the Otter Lake Sportsmen’s Club Fish Derby Saturday, Jan. 13, 2018–and they were rewarded. Blake Messer, back, and Brantley Heikkinen brought Blake’s northern pike to the fish derby measuring board. The fish went 25 5/8 inches and won second place in the Youth Division. Caiden Nutt took first in Youth with the biggest fish of the entire tournament, a 35 3/8-incher.

Human trafficking will be brought to attention in a series of events in the UP later this month. Keweenaw Bay Ojibwa Community College will host a U.S. Department of Justice speaker and others on Thursday, Jan. 25, 2018. Since 2007 943 human trafficking cases have been reported in Michigan. Law enforcement warns that human trafficking is highly under-reported. It is also closely tied to the trafficking of drugs, drug addiction and the opoid crisis. The Upper Peninsula Human Trafficking Task Force (UPHTTF) has recently been re-established. It has teamed together with the Department of Justice, U.S. Homeland Security Investigations, several Upper Peninsula law enforcement agencies, and other local “experts” in the field to bring human trafficking community awareness to the UP in a week-long event during Human Trafficking Awareness Month in January. Beginning Monday, Jan. 22, 2018, the group will host presentations across the UP at local colleges and universities. To read more, subscribe to the L’Anse Sentinel online, or buy a print copy at our local retailers.