Alarm bells are ringing as human trafficking incidents surge dramatically across one of the country’s largest states, prompting heightened vigilance among experts and parents alike. Recent statistics reveal that children are increasingly becoming the focus of these criminal activities.

North Carolina has climbed to the ninth spot nationwide for human trafficking cases, as reported by the National Human Trafficking Hotline. In 2024, the state documented 301 human trafficking incidents involving 580 victims, according to the Hotline’s findings.

The reported cases encompass various forms of exploitation, including sex trafficking, labor trafficking, and other unspecified or unknown types. In North Carolina alone, data from 2024 highlights 145 instances of sex trafficking, 73 of labor trafficking, and 38 cases involving both forms.

Hannah Arrowood, who leads Present Age Ministries, collaborates with the Charlotte Metro Human Trafficking Task Force to delve into and address this alarming trend.

“It really is kind of like a perfect storm,” Arrowood explained to Fox News Digital. “There are numerous factors at play. It’s crucial to understand that trafficking can occur anywhere, in any city or town, whether rural or urban—it doesn’t matter. Charlotte, in particular, has several elements that drive demand.”

“It really is kind of like a perfect storm,” Arrowood told Fox News Digital. “There are a lot of variables. One of the things that we have to know is that trafficking happens everywhere. It happens in every city and every town, whether you’re rural [or in a] city – it really doesn’t matter. But for Charlotte, one thing is that we have a lot of factors that attract demand.” 

The eye-watering number of cases is best explained by North Carolina’s sweeping interstate highway system, high demand for inexpensive labor throughout its agricultural industry, and increased amount of gang activity, experts said. 

“Part of the reason why Charlotte is such a huge trafficking hub is because of the highway system,” Toby Braun, founder of American Special Investigative Group, told Fox News Digital. “A lot of these traffickers are running victims and may start in South Florida. From South Florida, they go to Atlanta, and from Atlanta, they pass through Charlotte. Oftentimes there, they may put them in safe houses.”

North Carolina officials are working to combat rising numbers of human trafficking within the city of Charlotte, with data indicating a rise in minor victims between 2020 and 2024, according to data from the Charlotte Metro Human Trafficking Task Force.  (Mitchell Layton/Getty Images)

According to Braun, victims will then be transported to other major cities throughout the country – like New York or Houston – after passing through Charlotte. 

“Charlotte is kind of like a central hub, or an epicenter,” Braun said. “For the most part, it’s kind of a pit stop.” 

The number of Charlotte residents falling victim to trafficking can partially be attributed to the prevalence of gang activity within the city, with criminal organizations maintaining a firm grip on the area’s network, according to experts.

“The Bloods have a huge stronghold in human trafficking,” Braun said. “They’re one of the primary organized crime groups responsible for trafficking [in Charlotte]. For the most part, these are criminal networks. And that also makes it tougher, because of the kind of resources that they have and the ability to traffic people around, hide them in places and really stay undetected.” 

While many victims can be from out of state, Arrowood emphasizes that many of the individuals being trafficked are coming from within the Charlotte area, with perpetrators targeting school-aged children within the city. 

According to data from the Charlotte Metro Human Trafficking Task Force, 48% of trafficking cases in 2024 involved minors aged 15 or younger.

According to data from the Charlotte Metro Human Trafficking Task Force, 48% of trafficking cases in 2024 involved minors aged 15 years old or younger within the city, with experts warning most children are approached by criminals online. (iStock)

From 2020 to 2024, Charlotte saw a 76% increase in reported cases of minor trafficking, according to the task force.

“We do see every ethnicity affected – every socioeconomic class,” Arrowood said. “The pathway or grooming might look different if someone has housing insecurity or food insecurity, versus living in a middle-to-upper class, two-parent home, right? The method might look different, the coercion might look different, but we do see it across the board.”

Of the reported cases, residence-based commercial sex and domestic work were the leading venues for sex and labor trafficking, respectively. Additionally, 214 victims were female, 63 were men, and four included gender minorities, according to the Hotline.

In 2024, data provided by the task force revealed that authorities identified 106 minors within the Charlotte area who were confirmed or suspected victims of trafficking. The number is primarily attributed to criminals using newer, more creative methods to recruit their victims. 

“The primary way is through online [platforms],” Arrowood said. “They are connecting in some way or somehow, whether it’s through social media, a gaming app, [or] through a dating app. Then there usually is a meet in-person, right? We call it digital grooming. They’re grooming them, building trust – a lot of times they’re presenting as boyfriend, so [victims] are thinking they’re in a relationship with this person.” 

However, due to the nature of trafficking crimes, most cases go unreported. Arrowood also points to a backlog of cases piling up for local law enforcement, who may not have the resources needed to fully investigate each case. 

“Agencies are just always at limited capacity in terms of the amount of work, or the amount of people and manpower they have to manage the amount of referrals that are coming in,” Arrowood told Fox News Digital. 

The Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department declined Fox News Digital’s request for an interview and request for comment.

As the city continues to see a startling rise in trafficking throughout the area, particularly involving minors, Braun urges parents to take steps to keep their children safe.

“People think that these traffickers are these monsters – and they are,” Braun said. “They can be boyfriends or classmates. We’ve seen cases with coaches and people that you would never really expect, and I think that’s what makes them dangerous – the fact that they can be individuals that are hiding in plain sight.”