By David Triana
Human Trafficking is a problem that affects all of us, but especially those that are vulnerable and susceptible to manipulation.
If affects women and children primarily, but, children and youth are prime targets of this lucrative and criminal industry, especially kids who are experiencing homelessness.
No town, city or country is exempt from this illicit enterprise that generates more than $150 BILLION in profit for the criminals involved.
Children who are victims of sexual trafficking are physically and sexually assaulted, it is akin to torture and may involve them being kept up for days and forced to starve. Should they be lucky enough to escape, the physical, emotional, and psychological toll on them makes their recovery a long and very complicated process.
It takes the efforts of GOOD PEOPLE to mitigate the terrible consequences of human trafficking and for sure, it will take the effort of many more that care, to put a stop to it!
We can call Brian Denett, one of those GOOD PEOPLE. Brian is the founder and CEO of Raven Cell Security Consultants. He served in the military for over 20 years and as a Special Forces Operations/Intelligence specialist and engineer, he participated in combat and foreign intelligence defense deployments in many hotspots throughout the world.
As Brian tells it, it was during one particular combat mission him and his team were involved in, that he experienced something that eventually would lead him to create Raven Cell. “I saw how women and children were being abused, exploited, and placed in situations where their life was in danger by men who did not care for them as human beings.”
That experience stayed within him ever since and when he retired, he set out to try and do something to help those who are victims of human trafficking.
Brian created Raven Cell’s initial concept while participating in the Veterans Florida Entrepreneurial Program at the University of West Florida (UWF), in Pensacola. Robert Foster, a US Army Reserve veteran and the Director of that program, is now part of the Raven Cell Team. As Brian told a UWF representative during a recent interview, “Raven Cell serves as a force multiplier, dedicated to bringing the fight to human trafficking and assisting its victims.”
One other part of the model Brian created for Raven Cell and something that is very near and dear to his heart, is that “he wants his company to provide job opportunities for former elite military and intelligence professionals to use their diverse skill sets, experience and networks to fight something that primarily affects women and children.”
Brian hopes Raven Cell can be part of efforts, that hopefully other companies are also doing, “to keep as much of the great talent departing the military right here in our beautiful Emerald Coast region”, he said.
Raven Cell itself grew out of a contract he landed with Constellation Brands soon after his retirement from the military. Constellation Brands is a Fortune 500 company that produces and markets beer, wine, and spirits. They are the fastest-growing large Consumer Packaged Goods company in the U.S. at retail, with operations in the U.S., Mexico, New Zealand and Italy.
Brian and his team were contracted by them to conduct a threat and risk assessment on and around a brewery the company was considering purchasing in a city along the Sonora & Sinaloa border in Mexico.
Within 12 days of this contract, Brian had established a company, organized a team, and conducted a multi-agency briefing involving Mexican police and consulate officials.
Raven Cell’s threat and risk assessment assisted Constellation Brand shareholders and decision makers in a $900 million investment.
According to Brian, Raven Cell’s biggest accomplishment to date has been “developing the company’s operational infrastructure and building and through active participation in several sting operations,gaining the trust of law enforcement and agencies who have been involved against human trafficking for many years.”
Because of the professionalism and effectiveness of his team, they have achieved a level of credibility with other entities that has already resulted in successful operations to catch human traffickers in several locations within the United States. Most people are unaware that Private Sector entities such as Raven Cell are not compensated – and a week-long Operation can cost Raven Cell from three to $5,000 for one operation. Mr. Denett has asked Robert Foster, who has years of fundraising experience, to help migrate Raven Cell to a 501 3C Non-Profit where Mr. Foster can use his experience and contacts to create ongoing funds sufficient to sustain future operations.
Within the arena of fighting human trafficking, there are key partnerships that must be established, and Brian has been working hard at establishing solid ones throughout the region. Some of these include: The Child Protect Alliance, which is composed of several Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs), FREE International, KlaasKids, Called2Rescue, Anonymity Rescue, Changed Unchained, and Sports World Against Trafficking.
Raven Cell continually workswith Called2Rescue by providing surveillance preparation and planning instruction, preparing a target intelligence package of a known human trafficking site and they also conducted site reconnaissance practical exercises and surveillance and security during child exploitation and human trafficking sting operations.
Raven Cell is preparing to participate in a major operation later this year along with the Child Protection Alliance. Fundraising efforts to defray the expected costs of participating in this operation are in the works.
Brian is also very interested in ensuring that retiring special operations personnel receive Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) and Post Traumatic Stress (PTS) treatment in our immediate area. This cutting-edge treatment is highly effective and will aid in a smoother transition from the military to this critical work. Because the nature of the work is intense and emotionally impacting, having the personnel at their optimal set point through functional neurology will help them perform at their best for a longer time. Brian is collaborating with local Non-Profits like Defenders of Freedom and Healing Hoof Steps who are providing these services for veterans and as much as possible, help increase the number of options local area military personnel have to receive those services.
Taking the fight to human traffickers is a passion for Brian and his team! He is working very hard to grow Raven Cell and to bring in personnel that will help him ensure it is always run as a well-oiled machine from the business perspective. He is growing it by hiring the right people that not only have the business acumen, but also believe in its primary mission. Brian is hiring military personnel with the critical skills and experience that it takes to work in such a sensitive and dangerous arena and establishing the right connections with the group of agencies, both governmental and non-governmental, who are also part of the effort to “take the fight to the human traffickers” throughout our region, nation, and world!
Human Trafficking is akin to modern day slavery and affects adult women, men, and a huge number of children and youth. Because it is such a profitable endeavor for those who are involved in it, it might seem like it is an impossible task to mitigate it and defeat it. But it affects us all in one way or another…and it will take the efforts of individuals and companies like Brian’s, and the GOOD GUYS to try to do as much as we can to defeat it.
To learn more about Human Trafficking, go here: https://worldpopulationreview.com/state-rankings/human-trafficking-statistics-by-state
