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Feds head to Super Bowl to watch for human trafficking

By Megan Cloherty

WASHINGTON — It’s an exciting time for football fans, especially if your team is in the Super Bowl. But it’s also an event that draws the crime of human trafficking, and law enforcement agents say they are ready to respond.

“This year in St. Paul, Minnesota, you have a huge presence and there’s a lot of awareness,” said Scott Santoro with the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center.

He explained why the Super Bowl, of all places, is a hot spot for human trafficking.

“So you can imagine, they are building stands and stages and that labor costs money. And maybe you can get some illegal labor coming in. Then, of course, you have a lot of money being brought to the area, what about illegal prostitution? So because of that, what Homeland Security does along with FBI and the Department of Justice does is we have federal task forces established for these type of events,” Santoro said during an online symposium on human trafficking.

Because law enforcement has made its presence known weeks before the event, Santoro said the last few Super Bowls have seen a reduction in reports and arrests related to human trafficking.

The FBI published a video of what goes into the security preparations for the 2018 Superbowl.

Colombia wins Group K after 0-0 draw with Portugal; both squads already into World Cup knockouts

By The Associated Press
MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. (AP) — Colombia’s plan was nearly perfectly executed. The only thing missing was a goal. Didn’t matter — it goes into the knockout stage as a group winner. Colombia finished the World Cup ’s opening round as the Group K winner after playing Portugal to a scoreless draw Saturday night at Hard Rock Stadium in front of an electric crowd of supporters, the majority of whom were clad in Colombia’s bright yellow jerseys. “We were the better team and deserved to win,” Colombia coach Néstor Lorenzo said. “I think we created so many chances. We just lacked finishing. The players were outstanding against a top contender … not only did we play them on equal terms, we dictated the terms. I think playing against a rival like that, showing this kind of football to all these people, in this heat, was incredible.”
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