Two people accused of human trafficking of girls disappear from Palm Beach County nursing home

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. (CBS12) — Two girls who disappeared from a Palm Beach County nursing home earlier this month were victims of human trafficking in the area, the sheriff's office reported.

Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office (PBSO) officers rescued the girls on Wednesday after a police officer reported seeing one of the girls leaving a home with a suspected trafficker.

Two people, Faith Slayton and Michael Steinmetz, were arrested in connection with the alleged human trafficking. Both are charged with multiple counts of human trafficking of minors. Steinmetz is also charged with sexual abuse of a minor, while Slayton has been charged with two counts of obstructing custody of a minor.

At their first appearance Thursday morning, a Palm Beach County judge called the case one of the worst he had ever seen and then denied them bail.

See also: Accused murderer arrested after fatal stabbing in Boynton Beach in October 2021

According to an affidavit, after a cash transaction with another person, the girl got into a black BMW and they were stopped near the intersection of I-95 and 6th Avenue South. Acting on a warrant from the Department of Children and Family Services, authorities were able to take the girl into custody and soon learned of the other victim, who was hidden in a home.

Treasure Coast pastor, artist and advocate Lynne Barletta says this is just one victory in a much larger battle.

“There are wonderful foster parents who take care of children. And then there is the other part of people who take in children but make money from it, and that's why these children often fall through the cracks,” Barletta said.

These cracks are where human traffickers make their fortune.

Barletta says foster children are prime targets for traffickers who lure them with promises of money, drugs and false hope. It's a dangerous game and these vulnerable children are paying the price.

According to the National Foster Youth Institute, about 60% of child sex trafficking victims are or have been in foster care at some point.

Barletta founded the Florida Faith Alliance with a mission to educate churches, schools and businesses to raise awareness about the fight against child trafficking.

“With one or two girls, there could be hundreds of users involved, because you can abuse a child thirty to forty times a day. You can only use a drug once, and they use drugs to control it,” Barletta said.

Both girls told investigators they were supplied with marijuana, flakka and molly, in at least one case as payment for sexual activity.

One of the victims is said to have come across prostitution advertisements on the Internet advertising “Two Girl Specials”.

“Every child is at risk today because recruitment is largely done online. If you have a child who has access to social media, that means social media has access to them,” Barletta said. “This is the most horrific thing happening in our world right now.”

In a heavily redacted portion of the affidavits of all the suspects, the Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office noted that one man already in custody blurted out, “I only paid $20,” before being read his Miranda rights, after which he asked for an attorney.

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