In this week’s video series we spoke to Jim Fuda, the Executive Director for Crime Stoppers of Puget Sound & Vice-Chairman for Crime Stoppers Global Solutions. Fuda spends his days and evenings fighting against a whole host of international crimes including human trafficking. The thing he is most passionate about is a new app (Transnational Crime Initiative App or TCI ) that could curb the crime, encouraging anonymous tips in a way that both incentivizes and is safe in corrupted areas.
Fuda says, human trafficking is the fastest growing and second-largest criminal industry in the world today, and it’s estimated 45 million people are trafficked worldwide. Let that sit for a moment. Fuda gives an example in the video of what that actually looks like, he shares stories in our interview that are emotionally gutting. However, those stories and the statistics he provides are crucial to raising awareness of what happens in real life, not just in horror movies. A knowledge he’s not just affording the average citizen but also security companies that have resources and contacts in the countries the TCI app is targeting.
Specifically speaking to human trafficking….did you know ? Every four seconds, there is a new slave. In an hour, that’s 1,050. In a day, that’s 25,200, and in a year that amounts to 9.2 million. Human trafficking is just one crime the TCI app is focused on. The other areas include:
- Human Trafficking – Sex & Labor
- Terrorist Activity
- Narcotic Trafficking
- Illicit Trade
- Illegal Arms Dealing
- Cyber Crime
- Bank Fraud – Money Laundering
The app allows people to make anonymous tips from their phones, and incentivizes with a thousand dollars for said tip, if it leads to an arrest and a charge. It’s done so in a way that people can feel comfortable they won’t be harmed, or their families won’t be harmed if discovered. It is completely anonymous and is in native languages. The TCI app sets its site on the Balkan Route, including Serbia, Bosnia, Croatia and Slovenia, with the hope of expanding to other continents.
Now, let’s talk about how this affects everyone. Tips come into that hotline about illegal arms deals. Those deals could potentially include weapons used in a plotted attack on the U.S.. This app gets the tip and is clued into the deal and a potential terrorist attack could be thwarted. The point Fuda makes is, these crimes are not out of our borders and not our problem. They are very much everyone’s problem.
CALL TO ACTION: Here’s what Fuda needs help with…..get the word out. Please spread this article, his interview, to anyone who will listen. This is especially true if you/your company has contacts in the four countries mentioned. You can visit the Global Solutions website for more information and don’t forget to continue to visit ours for more videos just like this one.
