Houston Republic

A sex trafficking victim’s recent suicide has shed light on the epidemic in Houston.

Letty Serrano took her own life at 15-years-old on Oct. 12 after being a victim of sex trafficking. She was abducted when she was 13 and was held captive for several days before getting away, but her family told ABC 13 that she was never able to recover.

Her funeral services were earlier this month, and officials say her case is one of many in recent days.

“Houston is ground zero for human trafficking," Harris County District Attorney Kim Ogg told ABC 13 referenced Serrano’s case. "Law enforcement, the district attorney’s office and a lot of community providers are really trying to paradigm for sex workers, sex buyers and most importantly sex traffickers.”

Jennifer Herring works as a program manager for re-entry services for Harris County jail and added, according to ABC 13, “We are in a community full of women who are being trafficked. We’re here as a voluntary program to help these women get away from this life, but more so gain personal power.”

Dallas News also pointed to a 2016 University of Texas study that estimated 79,000 underage victims of sex trafficking in the entire state. A fourth of all trafficking victims in the U.S. are right here in Texas. The U.S. Department of Justice also seized an international child pornography ring and many of the arrests took place in Texas.

Herring told ABC 13 that even the suspected pimps are getting younger in age and take advantage of social media to get their victim’s attention. Herring’s program aims to provide resources for women including therapy, in an effort to prevent them from going back into sex trafficking after they released from jail.

Other organizations, such as New Friends New Life, Valiant Hearts, Free the Captives, Elijah Rising and more have also established resources to help victims with job training and housing.