A collaborative investigation by police services across the province has resulted in more than a dozen charges being laid in a case in which a woman was trafficked from Toronto to Saskatchewan.

RCMP described the investigation in a news release Tuesday.

Around 5:15 a.m. on October 23, Saskatoon RCMP were called to a business in Dundurn for a kidnapping.

RCMP officers responded and found a woman from Ontario in the business. The investigation revealed that the woman was being held against her will.

Saskatchewan. The RCMP Human Trafficking and Exploitation Unit (HTCEU) was contacted and an investigation was launched.

HTCEU investigators determined that the woman was forcibly taken to Toronto, after which she was subjected to human trafficking in various locations in Ontario, Manitoba and Saskatchewan.

As a result of the investigation, a 51-year-old man from Chambly, Que. was indicted on 14 counts.

They include:

• one count, trafficking in persons
• one count, trafficking in persons – material benefit
• one count, false imprisonment
• one count, sexual assault
• one count, sexual assault with another weapon
• one count, material benefit from sexual services
• one count, obtaining sexual services for hire
• two counts, pimping
• one count, uttering threats against a person
• one count, assault with a weapon
• one count, failure to comply with a probation order
• one count, identity theft
• one count, possession of property obtained by crime worth more than $5,000

The accused was arrested by the Saskatoon Police Service on October 23. He appeared in provincial court on October 24 and 28.

He will remain in custody until his next appearance scheduled for November 5.

In total, seven separate RCMP units and police services collaborated in the investigation.

“Human trafficking affects communities of all sizes, not just urban centers. It’s a reality that exists in towns big and small, including here at home in Saskatchewan,” said Insp. Jeff Smoliak, senior investigating officer with the RCMP’s Saskatchewan Enforcement Response Teams (SERT), said in the release.

“It is also a crime that has no borders. That’s why the Saskatchewan RCMP works in multiple jurisdictions to investigate these complex cases and works closely with municipal police services and partners across the country.

The RCMP offered some tips to help residents recognize the signs of human trafficking – reminding the public that anyone can be a target and victims can be trafficked by people they know, including former and current partners, family members, friends and others.

Recruitment tactics can be subtle, with many victims not even knowing they are being trafficked.

More information can be found here.