NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WKRN) – The SEC Men’s Basketball Tournament kicked off this week at Bridgestone Arena, but it’s what can happen after the event that has advocates urging caution.

“It’s not necessarily the event that’s causing it,” explained Truman Carelli with Operation Rose. “It’s not a championship or something like that, or some big sporting event. It’s just the demand, right?”

Nashville is no stranger to crime, but the bigger the crowd, the bigger the concern.

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Carelli is talking about sex and human trafficking. Although it’s a year-round problem, oftentimes advocates see an uptick when major events happen, with most people coming from out of state.

“It’s not necessarily going to see it while you’re at the game. You might not be able to spot it while you’re there, but when you go back to your room at night or when you’re leaving your room for the game or something like that, to remain vigilant,” she explained. “You got to think about events like this happening, you think about where are these people staying, where is the human trafficking happening; it’s not happening in the stadium; it’s happening in the hotels and the motels. We just encourage people to be vigilant.”

Operation Rose is a nonprofit organization that works to combat human trafficking in Middle Tennessee. Founded in 2021, the organization works with the hospitality industry to train those working in hotels on the signs and indicators of human trafficking.

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“It is incredibly concerning, especially because the data on human trafficking historically has been very unreliable because we just can’t track it, right? We just don’t know what’s happening, when it’s happening, so there is a lot that is reported, right? That increase, but imagine how much is going unreported,” Carelli said.

Human Trafficking has been on a steady rise in Tennessee. The latest data from the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation shows the number of human trafficking calls has gone up tremendously in recent years. Middle Tennessee is generating the most number of tips and calls.

One of the most concerning trends, in Carelli’s opinion, is the number of calls being made about minors being sex trafficked. Minors far exceed other forms of sex trafficking, with 45% of the tips dealing with children between the ages of 13 and 17 years old.

“That is the most alarming thing for me. Almost half of the people, I mean they’re kids and they are teenagers, too,” she said.

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Warning signs to look out for include:

Law enforcement will be out and present throughout the weekend. They are encouraging anyone who witnesses a crime or someone in need of help to flag down an officer.

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