Rockdale County man arrested for running sex trafficking ring, one victim was a missing teen

ROCKDLE COUNTY, Ga. — Police arrested a man in Rockdale County for running a sex trafficking ring.

Investigators told Channel 2 Action News at least one of the victims was underaged.

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Channel 2′s Audrey Washington was live on WSB Tonight at 11 p.m. at the Attorney General’s office in southwest Atlanta.

The AG’s office said Terry Florence, 32, is one of 11 men indicted in a sex trafficking ring.

Authorities say they found a teen in a Travelodge Motel room in College Park. The victim was a missing 17-year-old girl out of Missouri.

The teen was discovered during a raid called Operation Not Forgotten.

Last week, the AG’s office announced a new indictment against Florence. He now faces seven counts of sex trafficking and one count of sexually exploiting a child.

In a statement, Attorney General Chris Carr wrote in part: “This indictment is yet another example of our longstanding commitment to protecting our most vulnerable Georgians.”

On Tuesday, Washington sat with Jessica Roth, an intervention coordinator at Frontline Response. It is an organization dedicated to helping sex trafficking victims.

Roth said the organization helped during a recent sex trafficking raid in Coweta County.

“Every woman that came we offered her our services,” she said.

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Roth said many victims are in foster care or are runaways.

“Their pimps have them stay in a room and their buyers come to them constantly,” she said.

As for what can be done to combat sex trafficking in metro Atlanta, Roth says it starts with being aware.

The AG’s office says during Operation Not Forgotten, 26 children were rescued.

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