Wednesday, November 6th 2019, 6:46 pm
Two brothers accused of trafficking a young girl and sexually assaulting her are behind bars Wednesday evening.
Tulsa Police said brothers Kearis and Keandre Snell worked together to traffic a young girl, and possibly more victims.
An affidavit says the victim, who was 12 at the time of the assault, was dating Kearis, now 18, in April 2018.
It says Kearis "informed her she was going to make some money," then it says 21-year-old Keandre sexually assaulted the girl. Kearis "took money from Keandre for the sexual act," court records state.
It says Kearis "works every girl he dates."
"It's very prevalent here," said Carrie Tabor, who works with Hope 918, an organization fighting trafficking and sexual exploitation.
She said victims are often brought into human trafficking at a young age.
"This girl is 12," Tabor said. "That's the average age of someone that becomes a victim of trafficking. It keeps happening younger and younger."
The victim said Kearis threatened her after ending the relationship in July 2018.
"There were so many other victims of these two brothers potentially," said Andrea Graver with the non-profit Defending Dignity.
She said most of the time - traffickers know their victims.
"What we see is they're being trafficked by someone they know," said Graver. "It's a boyfriend, a friend; it's a peer."
Both women said all victims of sex trafficking have an opportunity to recover and get help.
"We are here for you," Graver said.
Both men are in the Tulsa County Jail on charges of child human trafficking.
Their bonds are set at $100,000 each.
For help call the human trafficking hotline: 1-888-373-7888.
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