Woman arrested after forcing 13-year-old foster girl to have sex with adults, police say
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A Florida woman was arrested Monday after she convinced a 13-year-old girl to escape from their foster home before forcing her to have sex with adults in Broward County, according to detectives.
Hannah Rose Marie Ellsworth, 18, is facing charges of sex trafficking of a minor, promoting the sexual performance of a child, and four counts of lewd battery of a minor between the ages of 12 and 16, county court records show. The Okeechobee resident remained behind bars as of Tuesday afternoon after a judge ordered her to stay away from the victim and to wear a GPS monitor, WPLG Local 10 News first reported.
According to her arrest report, Ellsworth, who was 17 at the time, persuaded the younger teen to run away from a foster home in Southwest Ranches on Nov. 15, 2021. Ellsworth then used several social media applications to arrange sex encounters with men in exchange for money to pay for food and shelter, the report says.
Police say that in the following days, the older teen pressured the victim to have sex with herself, an older man, and one other adult.
The victim was found by police on Nov. 18, 2021. Five days later, Ellsworth was also picked up by police, and investigators say her cellphone contained a video of her engaging in a sexual act with the victim. According to detectives, the video was uploaded to a social media app and appeared to have been shared.
A warrant for Ellsworth’s arrest was issued in Broward in December 2022, and she was arrested Monday in Okeechobee, according to authorities.
“Human trafficking cases are often long-term investigations that require detailed and complex investigative work and techniques,” a sheriff’s office spokesperson told the Miami Herald. “Proving that someone is being forced or coerced into labor that results in involuntary servitude, exploitation, debt bondage or slavery, takes significant care, time and effort. These cases are highly sensitive and require cooperation from victims in order to make an arrest.”
If you believe you may have information about a human trafficking situation:
- Call the toll-free, 24/7 National Human Trafficking Hotline at 1-888-373-7888.
Text the hotline at 233733.
Chat with the hotline via humantraffickinghotline.org/chat.
Submit an anonymous tip at humantraffickinghotline.org/en/report-trafficking.
If you or someone you know is in immediate danger, please call 911.
This story was originally published January 3, 2023 at 6:49 PM.
