Human trafficking cases in Pennsylvania jumped 44% from 2023 to 2024, and Chester County law enforcement says the problem runs through the region's backyard.
The National Human Trafficking Hotline identified 676 victims across 287 cases statewide in 2024, up from 470 victims the year before. No 2025 data has been released.
Kennett Township Police Chief Matthew Gordon told the Daily Local News that Route 1, Route 52, Baltimore Pike, Route 41 and Route 7 put the area squarely in traffickers' path. Kennett Township sits 12 miles north of Wilmington, 30 miles west of Philadelphia and 70 miles from Baltimore.
"These are major routes of traffic," Gordon said. "To think that there's not human trafficking or drug trafficking traveling on those roadways would be absurd."
Gordon's department relies on a community-policing model, building relationships with residents who flag suspicious activity. That local presence, he said, gives officers an edge because they already know the community.
Commissioners urged residents to act
The Chester County Board of Commissioners unanimously proclaimed January as Human Trafficking Awareness Month at their Jan. 21 meeting in West Chester. Commissioner Eric Roe said at the ceremony that law enforcement and nonprofits are working hard to combat trafficking, but called it a problem every resident can help eradicate. Commissioner Josh Maxwell addressed survivors directly, telling them the abuse was not their fault.
Carol Metzker, a longtime trafficking-survivor advocate, attended the Jan. 21 proclamation alongside representatives from the Wardrobe, a Philadelphia-based organization with locations in West Whiteland, New Garden and Coatesville.
Westtown church, regional groups raise awareness
The Church of the Loving Shepherd in Westtown has highlighted the crisis, citing an estimate of 50 million people worldwide living in trafficking situations. First Assistant Delaware County District Attorney Kristen Kemp said at a July 30 Red Sand Project event in Media that trafficking often looks nothing like the movies, sometimes involving a family member exploiting a child for rent money or someone leveraging addiction to control a victim.
How to report
Residents who suspect human trafficking or child exploitation can call the Victim Assistance Center hotline at 610-566-4342, available around the clock. The center is a Delaware County agency; no separate Chester County hotline was identified.
The National Human Trafficking Hotline is reachable at 888-373-7888, or residents can text "Be Free" to 233-733. Reports can also be filed through Homeland Security's Blue Campaign at dhs.gov/blue-campaign/report-human-trafficking.
