“It is important that law enforcement targets human trafficking from all angles in order to protect the victims as well as our communities. That means identifying and taking action against sex buyers and traffickers. Keep up the good work.”
– CSLEA President Alan Barcelona
SAN DIEGO — On January 25, 2026, California Attorney General Rob Bonta announced the arrests of 120 people during Operation “Stand on Demand” a statewide, joint operation by over 18 law enforcement agencies. The operation occurred from January 19 to 24, across multiple counties throughout California with the goal of arresting sex buyers, helping trafficking victims, and ultimately, arresting traffickers. Of the 120 arrested, 87 were for loitering, 25 for solicitation and eight for pimping and pandering.
This operation was part of a regional strategy aimed at addressing human trafficking and sexual exploitation by concentrating on the demand for these illicit services. It involves targeted enforcement that depends on both the surveillance of identified locations and the deployment of undercover officers.
“This Human Trafficking Awareness month, the California Department of Justice spearheaded a statewide operation to protect the public and take a stand against the demand for sex trafficking — by holding perpetrators of human trafficking accountable and supporting survivors along the way,” said Attorney General Rob Bonta. “It is vital that we carry out our goal in a manner that is trauma-informed and culturally competent. That’s why our task force members receive specialized training and experience to appropriately handle these cases with the sensitivity, compassion, and the care they deserve. I am thankful for these strong partnerships up and down the Golden State and look forward to all that we can accomplish when we work together.”
“The San Diego Imperial Valley HIDTA is proud to support the Human Trafficking Task Force in their enforcement efforts to protect the most vulnerable victims from sexual exploitation. The San Diego Human Trafficking Task Force’s innovative approach to utilizing federal, state, and local law enforcement resources to arrest those responsible for soliciting minors and loitering for sex will have a positive impact on public safety and, more importantly, the lives of the victims,” said San Diego HIDTA Executive Director David King.
This announcement underscores the commitment of the California Department of Justice (DOJ) to fight against human trafficking through the efforts of three specialized teams, the San Diego Human Trafficking Task Force, Fresno Human Trafficking/Sexual Predator Apprehension Team and the Sacramento Regional Human Trafficking Task Force. DOJ’s Human Trafficking Task Forces have worked tirelessly to investigate, identify and recover victims exploited for profit and gain by human traffickers and sexual predators. Since 2021, DOJ has secured 983 arrests and rescued and offered assistance to 1,013 victims. Human Trafficking is the exploitation by force, fraud, fear, or coercion of vulnerable people, for mandatory labor, domestic servitude, or commercial sex operations.
