Police reveal new details in Hillview human trafficking arrest

By Randall Kamm

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    HILLVIEW, Kentucky (WLKY) — A form of modern slavery takes place every day in cities and towns across the county.

Law enforcement officials describe human trafficking as a situation where force, fraud or coercion is used to make someone have sex for money against their will.

Last year, there were 344 reports of alleged human trafficking in Kentucky, according to the Cabinet for Health and Family Services.

In Bullitt County last weekend, a Louisville man was arrested for alleged sex trafficking.

Hillview police arrested 33-year-old Michael Broughton on human trafficking and drug charges.

According to court records, Broughton thought he was bringing a 20-year-old woman to a home on Prairie Drive to have sex with a man.

There was no man, of course.

Hillview police Officers Matthew Aden and Matt Brian set up the sting, then made the sex trafficking arrest.

The officers say they did it with help from a police website that pulls in prostitution ads from around the country.

From there, Aden and Brian looked for local numbers and found the woman offering sex. She allegedly agreed to meet for $300

Police say Broughton was her pimp and driver.

“He was forcing her by threatening her and her family. He took her social security card and passport and shredded them so she couldn’t leave,” Aden said.

The woman wasn’t arrested, but Broughton now faces felony charges related to human trafficking.

The sting worked, but the phone call to set it up wasn’t easy.

“You actually have to talk their lingo, talk the street slang. They will call and text and ask for a Facetime picture. Take a picture in front of your address is one I’ve seen a lot. They want your face with the address just to make sure you’re real,” Brian said.

The team said the goal isn’t to arrest women for prostitution because the person they really want is the trafficker.

Hillview is a small town, but is still a hotspot for sex work because it’s on Interstate 65 and there are many motels.

For the last 10 months, Aden and Brian have been working human trafficking cases in Hillview.

Even though they said they’ve encountered hundreds of female sex workers, they rarely arrest the women.

“If they don’t have anything illegal on them and no warrants, we honestly use it as a teaching experience just to let them know the dangers that come with this type of lifestyle and work,” Aden said.

The Hillview Police Department helps victims find and seek help through local human trafficking organizations and local churches.

And so far, there hasn’t been much extra cost for taxpayers.

Aden and Brian are patrol officers, but tell WLKY News they use any spare time to work sex trafficking cases.

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